GARRY MONK claims Marcus Tavernier’s elevation to Middlesbrough’s first team proves the club remains determined to offer its academy products a route to the senior stage.

Boro’s academy has long been respected as one of the most effective in the country, with a host of home-grown players having progressed through the ranks in the last couple of decades before going on to enjoy long and productive careers in the professional game.

The recent departure of highly-regarded academy chief Dave Parnaby and long-standing chief scout Ron Bone led some to question whether Boro’s youth set-up would suffer a downturn, but the emergence of Tavernier and fellow youngster Dael Fry suggests the Rockliffe Park system remains as effective as ever.

While Fry has spent the last couple of seasons on the fringes of the first team, Tavernier has burst onto the senior scene in the last six months and rapidly established himself as a permanent fixture in the first-team squad.

Having scored his first senior league goal in last weekend’s 1-0 win over Sunderland, the 18-year-old is currently on international duty with England Under-19s. He was a second-half substitute earlier this week as the Under-19s kicked off the defence of the European Championships crown with a thumping 6-0 win over the Faroe Islands, and will hope to be involved again when England’s youngsters return to action against the hosts, Bulgaria, on Tuesday.

He will almost certainly be involved in the Boro squad that will travel to Leeds United for the first fixture after the international break, and while there will inevitably come a time when Monk will have to take him out of the limelight for a week or two, his manager could not be more pleased with his development so far this season.

“I have been impressed with him since I came in,” said Monk, who has guided his Boro side to fifth position in the table on the back of three successive wins. “I have worked with plenty of youngsters so far, and some have had a chance, but we are pleased for him because he has done well with his opportunity.

“He is still young, so we have to manage that properly. He still has to work hard to maintain what he is doing. It’s still very early days for him.

“Both he and Dael have given their career a start, now they have to keep it going, they need to keep working hard and establish themselves in the first-team squad. Any step off the accelerator and they will have a downturn. They are grounded lads and I think they will be fine.”

From the moment he walked through the door at the Riverside, Monk has insisted he wants to give young players a chance provided they are ready to handle the step up to the senior squad.

He introduced a number of youngsters during his time at both Swansea and Leeds, and also fielded former Northern League midfielder Lewis Wing in a couple of Boro’s League Cup matches earlier this season.

Earlier this week, Boro reaffirmed their commitment to youth development when they offered Solomon Brynn and Stephen Walker their first senior deals, with the latter, a 17-year-old striker, having been linked with a possible move to Manchester United.

Boro’s Under-23 team currently sit at the top of their Premier League 2 table, and for as long as Monk remains in charge, the academy set-up will continue to play a crucial role in the Teessiders’ overall structure.

“For everyone connected with the club, it is great to have young players come through,” said the Boro boss. “That’s something this club has been proud of for years, and it’s important the pathway is there.

“I have done it at Leeds and Swansea and there has to be a pathway. I feel having a pathway to the first team is a real benefit to young players, to give you hope and that drive.

“I felt as young player that it would be key when I got older as well. You have to have the players to do that, and the players have to have the work ethic and want to do it.

“There are a lot of good players in this academy, some above others, and it breeds the whole club if there are some young players knocking on the door. That’s great for the young players to see and taste it. It can make a big difference to the whole club.”