Under 23’s midfielder Ross Finnie has revealed that first team captain Danny Batth and fellow centre half Richard Stearman have had a big impact on him as a player this season.
Although he is a midfielder, Finnie, who has been with the club since joining at the age of eight in 2006, says that the experienced pair have had a big influence on him this season in terms of his progression.
Both Batth and Stearman have been in constant conversation with the under 23s players who have regular access to first team players and training and Finnie believes that having them around the building is great for players in the academy like himself.
“They are always around the building so it is great that we can still have that little bit of involvement with them but something that I would say that I take from them now - which I might not have done a few years ago - is their advice during training," says Finnie.
“The lads know that you can play football otherwise you wouldn’t be here so they are always giving you bits of encouragement and they are always there to try and pick you up and motivate you more if you lose the ball in a game or you have a bad 15 minutes or so. They will talk you through what you have maybe done wrong and they will guide you as and when they can.
“The experienced players like Danny Batth and Richard Stearman are always great with us young lads because they talk to us a lot and they tell us about their experiences and they try and guide us into reaching our full potential.”
Finnie himself has enjoyed his first taste of senior football this season courtesy of a loan spell with National League side Gloucester City, and feels as though his brief period with the club has helped him develop as a player as well.
“Being around men’s football is all about personality more than anything," he says.
"You have got to want the ball even if the pitch is bad or the fans are on your back, it is a different atmosphere altogether.
"You have to be more physical and you need to put your body in the way.
“You have to be more clever in your play because you aren’t given a moment to relax on the ball, you are always going to be pressed when you have it at your feet. You have to change your game style as well because you have to see a game out and you have to tailor yourself to how they play as well.
“It is two different games so it is all about changing your style of play.
"In the under 23s you are probably going to be playing more of the game on the floor which I don’t mind if I am being honest but there are elements from both sets of games that you can take into the other.
“Being more physical is something that I have been able to take into the under 23s and being more technical was something that I was able to take to Gloucester City.”
Following his loan spell with the Tigers, Finnie admitted that he would be interested in heading out on loan next season, but acknowledges that will be a decision left up to coach Scott Sellars and the Wolves' staff.
“It would be something that I would consider heading out on loan again for either six months or the season, especially if it was going to help me improve my game," he adds.
"But at the end of the day it is the manager’s decision and I would have to have a chat with him to see what he feels would be best for me in terms of my overall progression.”
