Dundee fans can expect to see more of Ryan Astley next season says manager Tony Docherty.
The 22-year-old’s start to life at Dens Park has been a slow burn.
Astley was signed mid-January on a lengthy deal – joining only Trevor Carson in being contracted to the Dark Blues until 2026.
However, aside from 23 minutes off the bench at St Mirren, Dundee fans hadn’t had the opportunity to see what their new centre-back could do.
Coming from the Everton youth setup, where he made his U/23 debut at just 16, and having captained Wales at U/21 level there was pedigree.
He’d also had first-team experience on loan at Accrington Stanley in 2022/23 where he played 32 times and scored four goals.
But there were no first-team opportunities forthcoming at Dundee.
An ever-present on the bench, it appeared Astley would be something of an enigma for supporters by the end of the campaign.
However, injuries suffered by centre-backs Joe Shaughnessy and Ricki Lamie meant Astley’s patience paid off.
And manager Docherty was pleased with what he saw from the defender in Premiership starts at Hearts and Rangers.
‘Signed for a reason’
The Dens boss explained Astley’s first six months at the club.
“He’s someone we worked hard to get and there was competition to get him in,” Docherty said.
“He came in at a time in the season when we were doing really well defensively. He’s been an ever-present on the bench and only got one run-out against St Mirren.
“Ryan has waited really patiently and trained really well.
“All the staff have been really impressed with him, everything we thought about him is there.
“But his attitude has been great.
“He got an opportunity to come in against Hearts and I thought he did really well.
“He’s one we targeted and signed for a reason.
“Hopefully, we’ll see him playing quite a prominent role going forward.”
Tough baptism
Astley’s first starts came against Lawrence Shankland, en route to a 32-goal season, and 23-goal Cyriel Dessers.
A tough baptism in the Scottish game.
Docherty, though, revealed the plan was always to bed Astley into his team slowly after the 22-year-old made the move north of the border.
“He’s had to bide his time but when the opportunity arose due to injuries to Shaughnessy and Lamie, he came in and I thought he did really well,” the Dens boss added.
“Whenever we’ve seen him in bounce games or training, it’s been difficult for him but he’s acquitted himself well.
“He’s a good player, Ryan Astley, a very good player.
“We worked hard to get him and there was competition to sign him.
“He did well at the end of the season and I think we’ll see more of him next season.”
Conversation