It will take time to bed in players like Tanner, one for the future.
Ollie Tanner aged 20 previous club FC Lewis
By Glen Williams ( Junior Reporter )
Monday 1st August 2022
Take someone like Ollie Tanner, for example. If he had been with the Bluebirds last term, when over ten young players were thrown in to the first team squad, he might have been forced into the starting XI early on and the onus and pressure would have been placed squarely on his shoulders.
Now, though, that isn't the case. He, like Rubin Colwill, will have to bide his time as Callum O'Dowda, Sheyi Ojo, Jaden Philogene and Gavin Whyte provide some seriously stern competition for those positions.
The fact Steve Morison named Tanner on the bench for the season opener against Norwich City perhaps tells its own story, though. It shows where he is in the manager's thinking.
Many supporters eager to see him in action. He looked sharp in pre-season before a small injury setback and he came with a burgeoning reputation as an exciting talent, despite stepping up from the Isthmian League with 8th league Lewes FC.
STEVE MORISON:
Speaking about the winger on Thursday, Morison said: "Ollie Tanner is a project, he has time to grow." There is hope that he is an exciting project, but a project nonetheless.“
The 20-year-old will see the move to the Bluebirds as a bit of a shock to the system; training full-time, every day and playing in front of 20,000 supporters on a Saturday afternoon is quite the shift for him from crowds of 200.
But that isn't to say he is not in the manager's thinking or, indeed, that Morison doesn't think he is up to it. While Colwill, Isaak Davies and Joel Bagan were given huge responsibility last season, Morison now has the luxury of dipping Tanner in and out of the side when he sees fit. It's a far healthier environment in which to nurture the player's talent.
"He's got as good a chance as anyone," Morison said when asked about his potential first-team involvement.
"But I think his development is key because it has to be done correctly. He has come up seven steps, not trained week in week out, or every day. He's not played ever at the type of atmosphere or level that he will be expected to.”