Reports claim Preston North End among clubs interested in young goalkeeping talent

Preston North End are keeping tabs on young Doncaster City goalkeeper Ashton Powney, according to reports.

Football Insider transfer correspondent Pete O’Rourke claims that North End, along with fellow Championship sides Bristol City and Middlesbrough, are interested in signing the shot-stopper, who impressed last season for the non-league side.

The 17-year-old is the son of Doncaster City’s manager John Powney. The club, who were formed in 2022, play in the Northern Counties East Football League Division One, the tenth tier of English football.

He has recently represented England, having been called up to the under-18s Schoolboys team and playing 45 minutes in a 6-1 win over Wales.

Doncaster City said in mid-May that their goalkeeping prodigy would stay for a further season but it now appears that his rising stock has caught the eye of Championship clubs.

The report added that Powney would likely join the academy of whichever team secured his signature, if any, but is highly-regarded by suitors as a fit for the future.

PNE’s goalkeeping situation

Powney is unlikely to be the only goalkeeper on North End’s radar this summer. It was reported last week that they were in ‘positive talks’ over the signing of a new number two, who would provide cover for the club’s Player of the Season, Daniel Iversen.

Despite the possibility of Dai Cornell being offered an extension at Deepdale, Paul Heckingbottom will be keen to add to the goalkeeping department following Jack Walton’s sale back to Dundee United last month.

Last season’s scholar of the year, Li-Bau Stowell, who signed a three-year deal last autumn, will be hopeful of more development in the upcoming campaign following a successful loan spell with Hyde United. Both he and Brandon Milne have frequently featured in net for North End’s academy and impressed.

If Powney were to join PNE, he would be adding to an already promising group of young goalkeepers.