Maidstone United manager Craig Fagan hands debut to 17-year-old Rowan Gravenell-James in 2-1 National League South win over Salisbury

Seventeen-year-old Rowan Gravenell-James became the latest youngster to make his Maidstone United debut.

Manager Craig Fagan again showed his commitment to youth by introducing the forward in the second half of the Stones’ 2-1 victory over Salisbury on Saturday.

The National League South game was evenly poised at 1-1 when Gravenell-James replaced in-form striker Ken Charles in the 82nd minute.

Fagan and assistant boss Rob Tuvey had been impressed with the 17-year-old in training and had no hesitation in giving him an opportunity.

He put in a shift and only a foul by Yacou Traore on the edge of the box, which resulted in a second yellow card, denied him the chance to cap his debut with a goal.

“Rowan’s come on for his league debut, and rightly so,” said Fagan.

“There’s the squad and the bench and the lads who play are picked on training, so if he’s doing better than some of the first-team players, he gets his chance.

“He’s been sharp all week. On Tuesday, he was excellent.

“He played for the under-23s and played 45 minutes for the academy.

“He was little bit sore on Thursday but I wanted him to still be involved and he’s earned the right.

“I was gutted for him at the end there because he’s got finishing ability and if the lad didn’t get a little nick on him, he might have gone through and scored.

“But I’m pleased for him to come on and that’s the standard.

“Rob’s worked with young players, I’ve worked with young players, and we want to push them and try and test them.

“If that means him getting five or 10 minutes now and then, so it helps him and develops him, then it’s only good for the player and the football club.”