Mathew Mallon na

Mathew Mallon joined Everton's Academy at the age of just 4 years old. When the defender was with the club's under-15s, he sustained a stress fracture to his back thanks to his growth that sidelined him for an extended period. Having finally come back and been fit to kick a ball again for just around two months, he suffered the same injury once again - leaving him sidelined for a combined stretch of about 16 months.

"That was a hard period for me. Playing football since I was four, having such a long period out was hard, not being able to touch a ball. But Everton helped me with it a lot, it was me and the physios. When you're injured, you don't really have contact with the team, you see coaches every now and then but not much.

"The physios helped me a lot, they're a good team. A lot of gym work was needed. At the same time, they sit you down and talk to you about how you feel and they were good with me. I like that, and it got me through it.

"It was an important time, because that's when my scholarship was getting decided, so I was a bit unsure about whether they were going to give me it.

"I came back in, and then it happened again, but not as serious. It put me out for a bit of my first year as a scholar. Since then, I've had the treatment I needed and the work I needed, and it's not affected me since."

Having been injured while playing for the Under-15s, Mallon was now coming back into a completely new environment with Paul Tait and his Under-18 squad. The defender had to be reintroduced to the side slowly, playing 45 minutes of his first match for the U18s against Leeds United in December 2020 as a left back.

Mallon's athletic ability is clear whenever he takes to the pitch, and he's becoming more adept in the final third after spending most of his development as a strong defensive player. And he scored in a brilliant performance in the FA Youth Cup against Wigan. His performance in that particular match in March 2021 certainly caught the eye of David Unsworth, as he named the 17-year-old in his Under-23 squad to face Arsenal at Southport just a few days later.

A first-half injury to Einar Iversen meant that Mallon was called upon to play at right-midfield, and he capped off a bullish performance with an assist for Everton's goal in a 1-1 draw. The defender made a further three appearances from the bench for Unsworth's side and played a starring role for the U18s as they reached the quarter finals of the FA Youth Cup.

For the start of the 2021-22 season, the 17-year-old continued to work with Paul Tait's U-18s: "U18s football is still a very high level, but when you play for the U23s and then come back down to the U18s, you've got a slight advantage.

"U23s football is a lot faster, a lot more physical. You've got it in your mind when you play for the U18s. Obviously that's my age, it's not like I'm dropping down or going up a few levels.

"I'm playing against the same standard of player, but because I've had the taste of U23s football it's always in your mind on how to play. You are expected to have that slight bit of advantage."

In 2021-22, Mathew would stay with the U18s, playing just one game for the U23s, their first of the season in the Premier League Cup. And half way through the season, in January 2022, he would stop playing for the U18s. And in April 2022, aged just 18, he would decide to leave Everton, with the avowed  intention of joining Blackburn Rovers in July of that year. No explanations given.

However, his name would be a surprise inclusion on a list of youngsters offered new contracts in June 2022.

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