Ken Charles has signed a development contract at Colchester United.
The eighteen year old forward had been playing non-league and junior football last season but was invited to Florence Park in August for an extended, and ultimately successful, trial.
Ken spoke to cu-fc.com straight after the U23s game on Monday night, in which he scored the second goal in the 2-0 win over Charlton Athletic, and said how pleased he was to have signed.
"A scout came to one of my games and he must have liked what he saw because he arranged a trial for me here.
"I came during pre-season, trained every day for six weeks and was then offered a contract which I was pleased about, having come from nowhere really."
Ken has signed a development contract for the coming season, and is looking forward to playing as much as he can at a club reknowned for bringing youngsters through the Academy.
"I've only just turned eighteen and the aim is to get as much game time as possible with the U23s.
"I have seen that the club's target is to have the first team with 50% Academy graduates in it, which can only be a positive for any young player coming into the club."