Young Watford defender Ryan Andrews has signed his first professional contract with the Hornets, putting pen to paper on a new two-year deal at Vicarage Road that includes the option of a further year.
The promising right-back, who was born in Watford and joined the club in 2012, enjoyed a productive 2021/22 campaign, progressing from the Under-18s set-up to become a regular fixture in the Under-23s team, with his natural pace and dynamism key to his game.
A delighted Andrews said: “It has been a long time coming and I think over the years I have worked hard for this moment, so it’s a good milestone for me and my family. I’m really proud of how far I’ve come - it has always been on my mind to get a professional contract, but it’s just the start and the first step to becoming the person I want to be.
“It has been a good experience at Watford so far, and I have come a long way. When I first joined I wasn’t a right-back, I started as an attacker. I feel like over the years I have had to change my game and I think the coaches have helped a lot.
“It was a gradual change and as the game became more tactical, that’s when I thought I would be a good defender because I had pace. Even though I’m a defender now, I like getting forward because I can use all the things that I learned when I was younger.”
The 17-year-old established himself as a mainstay in Omer Riza’s Under-23s team during the recently-concluded season and has enjoyed challenging himself in the higher age group, having also featured in FA Youth Cup matches against Chelsea and Cardiff City with Tom Hart’s Under-18s side.
“The FA Youth Cup games are always good because you are playing in front of fans,” Andrews explained. “It is a different situation and sometimes you are under the lights. It’s a different experience for all of us, but at the same time, I feel like those games are when you progress more because you have the atmosphere behind you.
“I feel like that and my time with the Under-23s has helped me a lot, and even though I’m young I don’t think that has stopped me. I just kept my head down and if I played well and did the basic things first, I knew that I could maintain my place with the Under-23s and always progress and improve my game.”
For Andrews, inspiration and motivation have never been far away as his father, Wayne, enjoyed plenty of success during his own football career that spanned 15 years; including 37 games with the Golden Boys in the late 1990s.
The up-and-coming full-back credits his family for his successes and particularly relishes the friendly competition between him and his father.
“He [Wayne] has helped me a lot - not just with the footballing side of things, but the mental side as well,” he continued. “He has been in the same position as I have so he knows where I’m coming from and gives me little tips with things I can work on.
“Between me and him, we know the love and we have always had the conversation about whether he is going to be better than me or I’m going to be better than him! He just wants me to be as good as I can be. Either way, he is always proud of me.”
With an eye on the future, Andrews is looking forward to the start of the fresh 2022/23 season and making an impression on new Head Coach Rob Edwards.
He added: “That’s always the aim - to try and get as far as I can in pre-season. I feel in pre-season you can always show what you’ve got because it is a test to show the new Head Coach who has come in.
“It’s a fresh start for everyone to show what they’ve got. That’s the best time to get my head down and concentrate on myself. I feel like it is [a new start] here because you are playing for someone new, who hasn’t seen much of you. If you can get in the eyesight of them, you can always change their mind.”
