TYLER Goodrham is highly-rated by Oxford United and his first senior loan is at a club who know all about his quality.

It was against Hayes & Yeading United that the teenager, then 17, scored a delicious chip in the U’s 9-0 pre-season friendly win in July.

Goodrham followed that up with a similarly excellent goal against Banbury United 24 hours later.

His one-month loan was announced yesterday and it will be fascinating to see how the 18-year-old gets on at a side who are top of Pitching In Southern League Premier South – four tiers below United, the same level as Banbury.

Academy manager Dan Harris told the U's official website: “We think the world of Tyler and he has done really well this summer, but he needs to be in and around senior men’s football.

"This is a great opportunity for him to join a club where we know he will be really well looked after.”

Goodrham made his full debut in last Tuesday’s 4-1 Papa John’s Trophy defeat at Cambridge United, playing 90 minutes.

He was one of four academy products in the starting line-up, alongside Leon Chambers-Parillon, Michael Elechi (both aged 19) and Josh Johnson (16).

That gave an indication of where he sits in Karl Robinson’s thoughts and the U’s head coach praised Goodrham after the game.

He said: “I thought Tyler and JJ (Johnson) were real quality. These are ones that I knew before the game, it doesn’t surprise me.”

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Chambers-Parillon and Goodrham signed one-year professional contracts in the summer, with an option of an extra year, while an option was taken up on Elechi's deal.

Johnson only started his scholarship in July, but Robinson believes he has a bright future and has already tested him against Sky Bet Championship Queens Park Rangers in the Carabao Cup.

Of the nine U’s youth players to feature in first-team squads this season they are the only four to start, which suggests they are at the front of the queue.

Chambers-Parillon and Elechi were loaned to Vanarama National League South sides Havant & Waterlooville and Oxford City in 2020/21, so you would expect another spell away in the campaign ahead. 

The other five involved this season include United’s youngest player Gatlin O’Donkor (16) and 18-year-old Ben Watt, who travelled up to Sunderland with the first-team in April.

Clinton Nosakhare (17) and 19-year-old Josh Anifowose both made their debuts at Cambridge, while 17-year-old Adam Smith was on the bench.

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It backs up Robinson’s comments in pre-season, when he was asked if this was the most excited he had been by a crop of young players since he joined United in 2018.

He said in July: “It certainly is, and not just because of the talent they possess.

“Sometimes you get young players that come along and they don’t know how to handle the talent and the expectation that comes with that.

“There’s a different mentality swing in some of the ones we’ve got and I think they understand how far they can actually go.”