Exclusive: Former Bristol Rovers academy prospect set to sign for Championship club

Former Bristol Rovers academy forward Jordan Iwhiwhu is set to sign a professional contract with Championship club Luton Town, Bristol Live understands, just months after being released by the Gas.

Iwhiwhu, along with his younger brother Excel, joined the Rovers youth set-up in March 2022 but was released by the Gas earlier this year, with his brother still part of the academy. The 17-year-old, who attended Gloucester’s Sir Thomas Rich School, then studied at SGS College as part of the football program under former Leeds United manager Dave Hockaday.

During his time at SGS, he also represented Fulham Under-18s, making his debut against Norwich City in March. Iwhiwhu also scored four goals in one game against Luton and the Hatters are now set to sign the striker on a two-and-a-half-year deal ahead of the Cottagers.

Luton Under-18s play in the EFL Youth Alliance and finished top of Group C with 38 points from 18 games last season. The league acts as a second division of under-18 football below the Professional Development League, which is administered by the Premier League.

Jed Ward is the latest poster boy for Rovers’ academy following the goalkeeper’s breakthrough into the Gas first team last season, during which he started 18 of their last 19 League One games. The 21-year-old also won the first two caps for England Under-20s in the last week.

Hailing from Bradley Stoke, the academy product is expected to remain Matt Taylor’s first choice this term after signing a four-year deal in March.

Additionally, Luca Hoole made 25 appearances in the Gas’ last campaign, taking his senior tally to 102 games. However, it is still unclear whether or not the academy graduate will remain at the club with no confirmation yet on whether or not he has signed the contract he has been offered.

Taylor also handed Academy Player of the Year Kofi Shaw a senior debut off the bench on the final day of last season against Wigan Athletic, while the option to extend young midfielder Jerry Lawrence’s contract with one year. Rovers also handed then 15-year-old striker Ollie Dewsbury a senior debut in November when the teenage striker came off the bench in the 7-2 FA Cup win over Whitby Town.

However, there is still no clear path without an under-21 team at the club, the gap between the under-18s and the first team is still extremely difficult to bridge. The Gas hierarchy have made clear their intentions to invest in the academy and raise their status from the third tier to the second tier, subsequently integrating an under-21 team into the youth set up at the club.

Rovers had a development team until 2021 that competed in the Central League, but were forced to withdraw due to financial constraints.