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Work Experience For Young Duo

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Reading have allowed youngsters Simon Cox and James Henry to join Northampton Town and Nottingham Forest respectively, on short-term loan deals.

Explosive striker Simon Cox has already spent two spells with Brentford this season and drops down to League One again for a stint with The Cobblers.

He has made just one substitute appearance for The Royals this term and is looking forward to playing for Northampton Town.

‘It’s another chance for me to go out and get valuable league experience and knock some goals in,’ Cox declared.

‘The first spell at Brentford I really enjoyed, but it was cut short because of the fracture of my fibula. I then re-joined them after the injury and played more games, although we weren’t winning many.

‘This time at Northampton, hopefully I’ll score a few goals and win a few games. I know Alex Pearce well – he came through the same ranks as me – so that should make it easy for me to go there. Having Alex there will help me settle in.’

Northampton boss Stuart Gray admits he has been tracking Cox’s progress and was happy to take him to Sixfields.

Gray said, ‘Simon is a good young player and a great prospect. He is a striker and I’m very grateful to Reading for letting him come out on loan to us.

‘I’ve seen him play a lot for Reading’s reserves and hopefully he will have as big an impact here as Alex Pearce has had.’

Teenage midfielder James Henry has himself joined Nottingham Forest on loan. The 17-year-old is expected to spend the remainder of the season at the City Ground and joins Forest as they bid to win automatic promotion from League One.

Henry is yet to make his bow for Reading and admits he is now hoping to impress for Colin Calderwood’s side.

‘It’s a great opportunity for me to gain some experience of first-team football,’ said Henry.

‘Forest are a massive club and they’re only four points behind Bristol City for an automatic promotion space, so they are going to be really competitive games in front of big crowds – I’m really looking forward to that.

‘Hopefully I can go and have an influence on their season by playing well for them.

‘It’s a month loan with a view to perhaps extending until the end of the season.

‘It’s going to be totally different for me being involved in games which mean a huge deal to the fans and club.’

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4 comments

  • Thomas L'Heureux says:

    It’ll be good for both players to get some more first-team competitive experience. Cox has been tremendeous whenever I’ve seen him, and I’m sure both he and Alex Pearce will do well for Northampton.

    Notts Forest are a big club, and it’ll be interesting to see what role James Henry will play.

  • link201 says:

    lads like these need to be out getting experience, from what i have seen of Cox he will a great player and hopefully one of the few to make it through our academy. dont know too much about Henry but if he makes a lasting impression at Forrest then i’m sure he’ll come back here and do it too! good luck too em both!

  • kingsley the lion says:

    It s good to see so many of our youth out on loan! It wasnt long ago it was us taking in loanee’s like this. Hoepfully it will help them develop into players that can break through into the first team. I’d love to be like Boro with a fair old few local lads in our starting XI!

  • stevie_royal says:

    I went to school with Simon Cox, i was a bit older then him but he was always a good footabller, shows i must be getting old dont it?!

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