Find out more about Huddersfield Town up and coming youngsters
- Latest #YoungTerriers in focus series
- Town shines the spotlight on the Club’s Academy talent
- Today we look at Under-19s forward Kian Harratt
With the coronavirus putting paid to Town’s fixture list until 30 April at the least, we’ve decided to throw the spotlight on some of the up and coming Young Terriers in the Academy!
Today we take a closer look at Under-19 forward Kian Harratt, whose spectacular rise through the ranks led to a First Team debut back in December.
Kian hails from Barnsley and started playing junior football for local side Upton United. He spent time at Leeds United Academy before moving to Barnsley, where he played until he was 16.
He had a trial period with Town towards the end of 2017/18, making four appearances for the old Under-18 side, before being offered a two-year scholarship.
Harratt joined the new-look Under-17 group for the start of the 2018/19 campaign and commenced upon an amazing year of goalscoring. Over the course of his first year as a Young Terrier, Kian netted an amazing 32 goals in just 47 appearances for the U17, U19 and Elite Development teams.
That form saw him named ‘Scholar of the Year’ for Town at the end-of-season Premier League Youth Development Conference.
Kian missed part of pre-season ahead of the current campaign, but he returned from his injury with aplomb. Nine goals in just 14 Academy appearances alerted Danny Cowley to the young forward and he soon signed his first professional contract, committing his future until the summer of 2021 on 1 November.
Only a day later, he was named in the match day squad for the first time for the 1-0 Sky Bet Championship win at Brentford and his competitive debut soon followed; he came off the bench in the second half of the West Yorkshire derby against Leeds United in December.
That made Kian the second youngest player to feature in the second tier this season, behind Jude Bellingham.
Kian trained consistently with the First Team thereafter, but it was soon decided that he needed a further taste of senior football to further his development. He subsequently joined Vanarama National League North promotion hopefuls Harrogate Town and has scored once in three starts and four substitute appearances, playing alongside the likes of Jon Stead.
A left-footed forward with a real predatory instinct, Kian has made huge steps in his development since joining Town and his commitment to success will see that continue.
Have a look at our other profiles of the #YoungTerriers:
You can keep a close eye on the youngsters' development on Twitter via @htafcacademy.
