Southampton have sent a number of their talented young players out on loan this season with Russell Martin keen for them to experience senior football.
Whilst 18-year-old Tyler Dibling has been taking the Premier League by storm many of his age-mates have been getting a taste of first-team football in the EFL.
Whilst this may be less glamorous, Russell Martin knows not everyone can burst onto the scene in the same way Dibling has and loan moves to the lower leagues can be crucial for a young player’s development.
The likes of Zach Awe, Nico Lawrence, Lewis Payne and Cameron Bragg have all been sent on loan to clubs in League One or Two, but one of their fellow Southampton loanees has endured rotten luck for their second successive loan spell.
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Southampton loanee Dom Ballard suffers injury at Blackpool
19-year-old Dom Ballard has long been considered one of the most exciting prospects within the Southampton academy.
Last season the decision was made to allow the young striker to join League One Reading on loan where he linked up with former Saints manager Ruben Selles just months after the pair stopped working together at St Mary’s.
Ballard started brightly at the Royals, scoring five goals and providing three assists in 12 games in all competitions, before a Patella injury devastatingly cut his season short and he returned to Southampton to undergo his recovery.
Having returned to full fitness, Ballard was again sent on a League One loan this summer and has scored one in six third tier matches at Blackpool playing predominantly from a wide left position.
However, Ballard will now be ruing his rotten luck as the forward suffered another injury as his loan club beat Huddersfield Town 2-0 on Tuesday night.
Blackpool manager Steve Bruce confirmed as much post-match, saying: “Our biggest concern is Dom Ballard – we think he’s popped shoulder, which is cruel on him and us because he’s been integral to what we’ve done.
“He’ll be x-rayed and scanned so let’s hope it’s not too serious. We strapped it up to see how he got on, but it was obvious very early that he was carrying his left arm so we did the best thing and took him off.
“He was upset, which you would be. Injuries are horrible things as a footballer especially when you’re young.”
Ballard will still hope to be success at Blackpool before Southampton return
While Ballard’s injury at a similar stage of the campaign last season effectively ended his season, the hope will be that the shoulder injury will have a much shorter prognosis.
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It will be immensely frustrating for Ballard who will just be desperate to play regular senior football as he looks to forge a career in the game, but it would be expected that he remains at Blackpool rather than returning to Southampton this time around.
Ballard will have eyes on making the grade at Southampton and a swift return will only help his chances of returning to the Saints next summer a much more well-rounded player with League One games under his belt.