YATE TOWN have joined with Bristol Rovers to bring their League One club’s Under-18 academy matches to Lodge Road.

The deal will see Yate host six Bristol Rovers matches in the EFL Youth Alliance Under-18 South West league which kick-off this Saturday with the visit of Premier League AFC Bournemouth’s Academy to the town.

The games will kick-off at 10.30am, and the involvement of former Bristol Rovers age group boss Paul Britton, now manager of Yate Town in the Southern League Division One South and West league, has brought the link between the two sides.

Britton has worked on the deal with Yate Town’s director of football Nigel Hawkins, who is in charge of the club’s Under-18 team.

Britton said: “This is an excellent opportunity to watch potential Bristol Rovers players of the future, develop on The Lodge Road pitch.

“The Academy has progressed massively over recent seasons and I am confident that there will be exciting times ahead for both Rovers and Yate Town.”

Yate Town director Lawrence Wortman acknowledged that it was something of a coup for the club to have Rovers playing on their pitch.

“We are delighted to say that Bristol Rovers Under-18s are going to be using Yate Town’s Lodge Road on Saturday mornings.

“We have negotiated for them to play (matches) for the first half of this season up until December. It is six matches in total and after that, there will be further games that we expect them to play.

“It is a real plus as far as we are concerned not only because it gives us the opportunity to form that alignment with Bristol Rovers at that level but also gives us the opportunity to have a look at some of the players and hopefully act as a player pathway into the Yate Town first team.

“Also it allows us to encourage people to come down and see Bristol Rovers’ Under-18s who will be playing the likes of Yeovil and Bournemouth. So there are some attractive fixtures for people to come down and watch on a Saturday morning.”

After Bristol Rovers Under-18s play AFC Bournemouth this Saturday – all games are on Saturdays - they will face the academy sides of Yeovil Town on September 17, Swindon Town on October 8, Cheltenham Town on November 12, Oxford United on November 19 and Plymouth Argyle on December 17.