ST ALBANS City s exciting young midfielder Rob Magwood is enjoying every minute of his first team experience. With Godfrey Poku back at Luton, Magwood has come in and looked comfortable in the Saints midfield helping them beat Dorchester Town and Eastleig

ST ALBANS City's exciting young midfielder Rob Magwood is enjoying every minute of his first team experience.

With Godfrey Poku back at Luton, Magwood has come in and looked comfortable in the Saints midfield helping them beat Dorchester Town and Eastleigh.

The midfielder has had to adapt to the pace of Blue Square South but says he's really learning from the experience.

"The pace of it - coming from the youth team to the reserve team and then the first team - is different but I enjoy it," Magwood told the Herts Advertiser.

"It's great to get this experience. It makes you physically and mentally stronger and hopefully I can only go on."

Magwood is just one of several youngsters to have made their first team debuts this season and the former London Colney man says it's good for youngsters to see that they can progress into the first team at Clarence Park.

"It's good for people to see you can go from the youth team to the first team and it also benefits the college, Oaklands, as well," he added.

"Ross Dedman, he's another one, and you've got a few other youth team players coming through the ranks into the reserve team so you might start to see them as well."

Magwood was the captain of City's youth team that did so well in this year's FA Youth Cup and the 17-year-old says it was a fantastic experience.

"I was at Watford when I was younger and I never had any experience of the FA Youth Cup there," he said.

"Having that run was good because I'd broken my wrist the year before and I wasn't able to play so that made up for it."

Magwood described captaining the side as an honour and thanked boss Steve Castle for the influence he has had on his career.

"It was a great honour (to captain the side), Steve's given me a lot in the last two years because when I left Watford I was just playing Sunday League football and he's given me a lot. He's a very good coach and he's old school as well which I really like.