A host of Academy players have been involved in Derek McInnes’ first-team group across pre-season, and Thomson says the interest the coaching set-up has shown in his young group can only serve to benefit their development.
The young Gers were 3-1 winners at Foundation Park on Tuesday afternoon, with Callum Burnside on the scoresheet twice having been part of McInnes’ squad for the training camp in Spain earlier this month.
Speaking about the influence of the first-team staff, Thomson commented: “There’s a real freshness about it with the new management team coming in.
“They have been really integral in their part of it and they’ve shown a real interest in what we’re about. It definitely lifts the level, and you could see it in the game on Tuesday.
“They’ve been in constant contact with everyone in training. There has been a real movement of players, and they’re interested after the games in who has played, contributed, the type of game it was, and the type of characters that we have in the building.
“It has been more about the character of player that they’re after. The management team knows that there is talent in the building, but it’s that other bit after the character in terms of being able to handle first-team football which is part of my job.”
It was naturally a refreshed Under-19s group for the opening fixture of the campaign, with several important players from the previous campaign having taken the next step in their individual development by embarking on loan moves.
One of those, Kyle Glasgow, only turned 16 earlier this year and is already impressing on loan at Alloa Athletic in League One as part of the club’s loan co-operation agreement with the Wasps.
Thomson continued: “For us as a coaching staff we’re immensely proud of winning the two league titles but also to get the number of players out on loan.
“It’s utopia for us to have 16-year-olds playing first-team football, and it shows what we’re doing behind the scenes is preparing guys for the rigours of first-team football.”
The starting lineup on Tayside included three players born in 2010 who signed their first professional contracts only earlier this year.
And yet it speaks to the talent within the Academy that Coben Fergusson, one of those three, played his part in the first and third goals, while Luca Rankin and Ruaridh Hall impressed throughout.
Thomson added: “It was difficult on Tuesday because it was the first game of the season, a bit of nerves, but the onus is still on developing and winning games, and that’s what we’re tasked to do.
“These guys can marry in the fact they’re developing as players and young individuals but also to have that desire and hunger to win.
“The first part of the game we lost a goal inside seven minutes and got hit on the counter-attack. You can put that down to poor shape behind the ball and not enough pressure, but it was a great finish and our central defender slips.
“But that’s the challenge at Rangers, and the only difference here is that there wasn’t fifty-five thousand fans screaming at you.
“We came back from it, and I thought Coben Fergusson had a great game and managed to get us a penalty kick.
“We had a real sprinkling of overage players playing, and that’s part of what they need to get ready to go out on loan.”
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