HARRY Vaughan being handed a professional deal is a sign of Latics’ academy continuing its reputation for producing talent.

The 17-year-old has already performed well in the senior game, an enigmatic attacking midfielder whose vision and energy provided something different in the final third.

Keith Curle had given him the chance to play more first-team football and he’s definitely been the best of the players who came through the youth set-up last season.

Not only is a two-year deal a display of how highly Latics rate him, it means that we will be able to command a much higher transfer fee if he is to continue his development and be snapped up by a club in a higher division.

It took a short while for the academy to adapt to the departure of Tony Philliskirk, but it now seems to be flourishing. Zak Emmerson has been one of the best forwards in the under-18 Premier League, resulting in a call-up to the England youth set-up, and we could see a sizeable sell-on fee in the future if he follows his current trajectory.

The development squad unearthed a young goalkeeper last season who was subsequently sold to top-flight giants Liverpool, bringing in additional revenue to support the club's Academy.

It is good to see that Keith Curle is working closely with Paul Murray and Selim Benachour to integrate the youth team more closely with the senior players.

Rochdale are a perfect example of a club who have reaped the benefits of a strong academy, with the likes of Luke Matheson and Kwadwo Baah having moved on, and that is something we should try to replicate.

The aim next season must be to get out of the division. A blend of our own youth, experienced signings and as few loans as possible would be a good formula to assembling a winning side.

Reports suggest that we may be eyeing up a move for experienced holding midfielder Luke Joyce, the sort of player we were crying out for last season.

Losing Chris McCann left us weak in the middle of the park and was undoubtedly a reason why we shipped as many goals as we did in the recent campaign. The likes of Joyce are the sort of players we should be using the window to recruit, then Latics can supplement that with younger talent.