NEW academy manager Keith Brown has welcomed the reinstatement of reserve football at York City.

The Minstermen's first official second-string league fixture for seven years took place this week and, despite ending in a 2-1 away defeat against Hartlepool, Brown reckons it was a great experience for the club's playing scholars.

Apprentice striker Flynn McNaughton scored the visitors' consolation, while midfielder Sam Fielding was singled out for particular praise by first-team chief Jackie McNamara afterwards.

Brown reckons the teenagers will have benefited significantly from the exposure of playing with and against senior professionals.

The City coach, himself, profited from playing alongside some of the country's finest players in the mid-1990s, when he cut his teeth as a reserve-team defender at Blackburn.

At that time the likes of Alan Shearer, Graham Le Saux and Colin Hendry plied their trade at the former Premier League champions.

"It's a huge transition from youth to senior football and it can be too big a step that some aren't ready for – but it's an important stepping stone," said Brown.

"It gives you the opportunity to play alongside senior professionals, like I did at Blackburn when I played with some top players, and I'm delighted that the manager put it back in place."