Further to a recent post about a Whitby Town Under-18s team entering the Durham FA U18 League, Whitby Town would like to clarify its position by issuing the following statement.

Ahead of the 2024/25 season, Whitby Town will be linking up with Middlesbrough College for a training base.

With this, an agreement has been reached for Middlesbrough College to enter a team in the Durham FA Under 18 League for the 2024/25 season.

This team will open up a pathway into football scholarships with Middlesbrough College - something the club has long sought after pulling together.

Currently, the only scholarship avenue locally is Scarborough Football Scholarship, though this is linked with Scarborough Athletic Football Club.

Talks have previously been held with Caedmon College and Whitby Sixth Form, who deemed that it wasn’t a viable option, which has meant the club has had to look further afield for options in this respect.

This will not affect the current Under 19s structure for the 2024/25 season, with the team continuing to participate in the FA Youth Cup for the coming season, under the guidance of Stephen Swales.

Following discussions with the board, both Swales and Mark Storr are in agreement with the plans, and want to support development of junior players from Whitby and the surrounding area.