Davis on the promotion of Westy and Powelly.

Steve Davis, the Crewe Alexandra manager says the debuts of our former Academy graduates Ash Westwood at Aston Villa and Nick Powell at Manchester United will only act as a spur for the youngsters coming through our system.

minute, with Powell scoring in United’s 4-0 win over Wigan at Old Trafford.^stBoth Westwood and Powell marked their debuts in the FA Premier League when coming on as substitutes in the 71

Steve told the club’s official web-site: “Every young player wants to play at the top level and reach that pinnacle and Westy and Nick have shown that.

“They have shown they have the ability to make that step up and it can only be a spur for those coming through our Academy. They will look at Nick and Ash and think that if I work hard and apply myself then that could happen to me.

“It should drive our younger players on to become better players and see themselves in that position. It was a proud moment for the club to see two of our local lads making their debut in the Premier League and now they have to keep going.

“Nick scored a great goal. He has done that sort of thing a thousand times here coming through and he showed real composure to take a touch and then struck the ball really well. I’m sure Sir Alex will see that he has the quality and temperament to play his part this season.

“The same with Ash. He got 20 minutes for Villa, which was good and it shows that the manager has great faith in him because it was a tight match at the time. Coming on and making their debuts will give them both great confidence and they will prove that they are good enough for their level.”