Two former Newcastle United and Sunderland academy players featured for South Shields in a pre-season friendly win at Blyth Town.
The Mariners have been working hard to add to their squad over the last month and have already concluded deals for The New Saints left-back Jordan Marshall, midfield duo Khanya Lashabela and Toby Onanaye and former Woking striker Sam Ashford. Another new addition was secured ahead of Friday night’s opening pre-season friendly at Northern League club Blyth Town as head coach Mike Williamson completed the signing of Adam Campbell after playing alongside the versatile forward during his time at Newcastle United before making him part of his Gateshead squad that won the National League four years ago.
South Shields head coach Mike Williamson (photo Kevin Wilson)placeholder image
South Shields head coach Mike Williamson (photo Kevin Wilson) | South Shields
However, the departures of the likes of Martin Smith, Dan Ward and Will Jenkins mean Williamson still has work to do as he prepares his squad for his first season in charge at Mariners Park. Former Newcastle United academy goalkeeper Will Anderson and Academy of Light product Marshall Burke both appeared as half-time substitutes during Friday night’s win against Blyth Town and have trained with the Mariners over the last week.
Former Sunderland midfielder Burke looked composed throughout the second 45 minutes at Gateway Park as he made his first appearance of pre-season a month to the day after it was confirmed he had been released by the Black Cats. The 21-year-old featured across Sunderland’s Under-18s and Under-21s sides in recent season - although he made just a handful of appearances for the second string last season and the professional contract he signed during the summer of 2023 drew to a close.
Goalkeeper Anderson, who turns 18 this week, produced a solid display after replacing Mariners number one Jasper Sheik during the interval and he will hope to continue catching the eye after he was released by Newcastle last month. The Tyneside-born keeper was a regular in the Magpies Under-18s side during the 2024/25 campaign but nine unused substitute appearances were the closest he came to stepping into the Under-21s side last season.
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