South Shields star Will Jenkins reflects on Dunston UTS spell ahead of FA Trophy clash

South Shields midfielder Will Jenkins has admitted he will always have a debt of gratitude to Dunston UTS – but warned that won’t stop him trying to bring an end to his old club’s historic FA Trophy run on Saturday.

The Mariners academy product embarked on the first loan spell of his career when he joined Dunston on an initial six-month loan ahead of the 2022/23 Northern Premier League season and that deal was extended to cover the entire campaign.

Thrust into the challenging and demanding environment of the East Division, Jenkins flourished and had racked up double figures in goals and assists in 31 appearances by the time he returned to South Shields during the following summer.

Despite interest in another temporary stint at Dunston, a similarly productive loan spell with Morpeth followed as the Mariners and Jenkins himself opted to test his ability at a higher level – and the midfielder has reaped all of the rewards of his time away from the 1st Cloud Arena by establishing himself as a key figure within the South Shields side over the last 18 months.

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Reunion

Speaking ahead of his reunion with Dunston on Saturday, Jenkins told The NLP: “I can’t speak highly enough of that club and the people there.

“I owe them a massive debt of gratitude for what they did for me and my career.

“The players, some are still there now, they helped me because as a young kid going out on your first loan, it’s nerve-racking – but they were brilliant.

“I knew some of them, people like Jon Shaw, Phil Turnbull and Craig Baxter.

“The staff, Swaz (Chris Swailes, former Dunston manager) and Jon (McDonald, then assistant manager, now manager), they were great with me too and I won’t have a bad word to say about the club.

“Both me and Shields wanted a progression, so it was the right time to go to a level higher and play in the Northern Premier League Premier Division with Morpeth and looking back, it was the right move.

“I would have loved to have stayed with Dunston; there was never a reason why I wouldn’t have stayed because I loved my time there.”

Grateful

Jenkins has watched on as McDonald stepped into the lead role in the home dugout at the UTS Stadium and led Dunston to two successive East Division play-off finals before their hopes of promotion were dashed by penalty shoot-out defeats against Stockton Town and Stocksbridge Park Steels.

The former North Shields and West Allotment Celtic boss has continued to evolve his side, and he has created history by becoming the first Dunston manager to lead the club to the second round of the FA Trophy after claiming wins against Brighouse Town, Witton Albion, Warrington Rylands and Hebburn Town in the previous rounds.

Jenkins gave an insight into the support he received from the Dunston boss and believes McDonald’s main aim during their time working together was to help him “kick on in his career”.

“Jon was assistant at the time, but he still had a lot of say, and he supported me massively during that time,” he said.

“He was constantly helping me, we would always speak on the phone, and we still speak now, to be honest.

“He just wanted to help me, he wanted to see me kick on in my career and that was always the main thing for him, so I’ll always be grateful.”

Challenge

Despite his obvious affection for Dunston and McDonald, Jenkins warned he will put those feelings aside for 90 minutes on Saturday as South Shields look to take a first step on the road to Wembley as their FA Trophy run kicks off on their home patch.

He said: “Obviously, all of those good words for Dunston go out of the window for 90 minutes – and then I’ll be pals with them again after the game because we want to win the game and get through the tie on Saturday.

“It will be a challenge for us, but we want to get through.”

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