Barrow manager Mark Cooper has revealed his interest in new striker Jacob Wakeling extended beyond his performance for Leicester City at Holker Street in the Papa John’s Trophy.
He was impressed by him when he saw him playing in non-league in 2020.
The Bluebirds boss has sealed the deal to bring the 20-year-old starlet on loan from Premier League outfit Leicester City with the forward set to stay at The Dunes Hotel Stadium until the end of the season.
However, Cooper has admitted that it’s not just during the current campaign that Wakeling has caught his eye and says he’s looking forward to working closely with him during the remainder of 2021/22.
“I have been tracking him seriously since the summer,” Cooper explained.
“He went into non-league football playing men’s football at a young age where he got kicked and trampled on, but he scored a lot of goals and Leicester bought him.
“I had seen him playing for Alvechurch and I kept a note of that and an eye on him when he went to Leicester so, when there was an opportunity to bring him here, I wanted to pursue it.
“He’s a bit of a throwback in that he just wants to run and work hard but he also has a history of scoring goals so, if you put all those together, I am really excited to work with him and see him in a Barrow shirt.”
Cooper is pleased with the transfer business he’s been able to get done since the January window opened, with Wakeling following Will Harris and Anthony Glennon in signing loan deals with the club.
“When we set out and people asked me what I wanted I would always say I wanted honesty and people who were desperate to come and play minutes.
“Will and Anthony were both in that category and I know Jacob is also desperate to come and play in a first team environment with us.
“I think you saw the honesty of our team at Barnsley on Saturday so in order to get anywhere near the team you have to show that grit and determination to fight like they did.
“I have brought in two forwards in Harris and now Wakeling, so I think that probably gives you a clue about how I want to attack things going forward.”
In other club news young Bluebirds goalkeeper Scott Moloney has joined South Shields on a one-month loan deal.
The 20-year-old is into his second season at The Dunes Hotel Stadium and made an impressive first team debut during the Papa John’s Trophy game at Accrington Stanley in August 2021.
Now Cooper has given the go-ahead for the former Bury and Hartlepool United keeper to move on loan to gain further senior experience.
Moloney will now link-up with South Shields, who are currently fourth in the Northern Premier League table and are managed by former Blackburn Rovers and Leicester City striker Graham Fenton.
The young keeper will hope to go straight into contention to make a debut for The Mariners when they host Radcliffe at 1st Cloud Arena on Saturday.
Meanwhile Barrow can expect a clutch of clubs checking in on their games over the next month or so.
Since they took Anthony Glennon on loan from Burnley, reports have claimed that up to three clubs will be monitoring his progress at Barrow.
Hull City, Middlesbrough and Sunderland are all reported to be keen to see how Glennon develops with the Bluebirds.
With Liverpool when he was six-years-old, and a member of the Under-23’s squad under Steven Gerrard, he got his senior break after switching to Burnley with a debut in the FA Cup.
It was also the FA Cup which provided him with his Barrow debut, and a scoring one in the dramatic 5-4 extra time defeat at Barnsley.
