Conway has sent a message with early season performances, says Schumacher
MAX Conway has proven to Steven Schumacher that he is first team material at Wanderers.The homegrown defender has impressed after returning from last season’s loan in League Two with Crewe and is now holding down the left-back spot as his own.AdvertisementAdvertisement AdvertisementConsideration was given to bringing in cover after Richard Taylor picked up a groin injury in pre-season – but the St Mirren man now faces a serious challenge to reclaim a starting berth on his return.Wanderers wanted to take a good look at Conway in the summer but his performances against the likes of Preston, Stockport and Plymouth have convinced Schumacher to throw his weight behind the 21-year-old.“As I’d said that the start of pre-season I went and watched him live at Crewe and I watched a lot of his stuff over the summer on Wyscout and clips and it was clear he was very good going forward,” he told The Bolton News.“He played as a wing-back for Crewe and we knew he was talented, could run forward, but he didn’t stop crosses particularly well for them last year.AdvertisementAdvertisement Advertisement“The first day he got in the building, we spoke about that. I said, if you're going to play left-back for me, you're going to have to make sure you defend well in wide areas and stop crossers. And t be fair to the lad he has been outstanding.“When Richard Taylor got injured at Hibs, it did cross our mind that we might need to bring somebody in. We still at that moment hadn’t seen him play in a league game, just a couple in pre-season.“But his performances since then have been brilliant. He has said to us, I’m ready to play now.“So, when Richard Taylor is fit, he's going to have a job to get him out of the team.”AdvertisementAdvertisement AdvertisementConway has come up against Thierry Small, Malik Mothersille and Bali Mumba in his first few games this season, and Schumacher has been impressed by the way he has taken to regular League One football.“It is a good yardstick,” he said. “He has shown different sides against different styles of winger that he can cope at this level of football. So, with that, he should be playing with loads of confidence and belief in himself.“He has still got loads of work to do. He has still got loads of time for him to get better. But for now, he's doing really well.“And he's one of our own players, which is brilliant. To have an academy lad in your team is excellent. Why can't he stay there?”AdvertisementAdvertisement AdvertisementSchumacher has added two players to the squad this week in keeper Tyler Milller and winger Ibrahim Cissoko but remains on the hunt for another striker to complement his two first team forwards Sam Dalby and Mason Burstow.“I like to have strikers that have got slightly different profiles,” he said. “Sam's outstanding attribute is he's really good from crosses. He scores his goals in the penalty box. Mason's outstanding attribute is that he is really good in the link-up play and he's powerful to run in behind. He gives us a little bit of both.“The other striker that we bring in, will have to complement both of them.“When they're both fit, they're two really good players. And if we can get a third, that's also a really good player. That gives us a better chance to win games.”
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