ROMAINE Sawyers, Shrewsbury Town’s latest loan recruit from West Bromwich Albion, is keen to repay Graham Turner for handing him the chance to show what he can do on the Football League stage.
The 20-year-old striker joins a growing list of up-and-coming Baggies players to make a temporary switch to the Greenhous Meadow.
The likes of Luke Daniels, Joss Labadie and James Hurst have all impressed after loan moves from The Hawthorns and now Sawyers, a St Kitts & Nevis under-23 international, wants to do the same.
“I came here to get some first team games under my belt and hopefully the gaffer will give me an opportunity to do so,” said Sawyers, who started his first league game in last weekend’s 1-0 defeat at Torquay and came on as a substitute in Tuesday’s home win over Bristol Rovers.
“It’s a great club and I’ve nothing bad to say. The people around me from the coaching staff to all the players have all been supportive so it’s a good place to be at.
“It’s a very exciting time and there’s a lot of games in the time that I’m here so hopefully I’ll get the chance to repay the manager for bringing me in.”
Boss Turner has been impressed with what he’s seen of Sawyers on the training ground, enthusing about the Birmingham-born striker’s skills.
“It’s always nice to hear when a manager’s got positive things to say about you,” he said. “You just have to take it on board and repay the faith he showed in signing me with performances.
“The ability here is very good. We do a lot of passing sessions in training and I’m used to that at West Brom.
“Everyone at Shrewsbury wants to play and pass the ball whereas a lot of modern day League Two clubs like to go long and get the ball up to the striker.
“Shrewsbury like to play out from the back and get it down on the floor which is the right way to play.”
Making the grade at West Brom remains the ultimate ambition for Sawyers who has been attached to the Baggies for 13 years.
His current contract expires at the end of the season but there is the option for an extra 12 months which is a definite target for the Town loanee.
“I’ve been at West Brom since I was seven so it’s a long time,” he said.
“I’ve been through every stage but I haven’t played first team football yet.
“I train with the first team quite often and I’ve been on the bench a few times. I’ve played first team friendlies but nothing competitive.
“Hopefully I can do well for Shrewsbury, help the club get promoted, and then go back and kick on.
“It’s always been my dream since I was a young boy to play for my local team. It would be great to play for the first team and become a legend there.
“I don’t see myself wanting to play anywhere else but West Brom.
“I’m from Great Barr so Villa’s close but my nan lives near the West Brom ground so I’ve always been around there.”
Sawyers added he loved training with the Albion first team when he has the chance and revealed Northern Ireland international Chris Brunt is the player who most impresses him.
“In the current squad, I look at him as some of the things he does in training are unbelievable,” he said. “The skills he’s got are second to none.
“There’s a lot of talented players there and the gaffer, Roy Hodgson, is very knowledgeable in the game. Everything is on the up there at the moment.”
Sawyers enjoyed a nice break from his every day routine in November when he was called up to play for St Kitts & Nevis at under-23 level in a trio of Olympic qualifiers.
“My grandma’s the link to St Kitts,” he said. “We played three games against Cuba, Trinidad & Tobago and Surinam.
“I scored four goals so it was a great tournament for me, but we didn’t qualify so that was a bit of a downer.
“The appreciation that I got when I was playing there and the love, I don’t think I could turn my back on them. That’s who I see myself playing for in the future.”