Reports: Former Irish League youngster in talks to sign new deal at Championship-bound Derby County

Darren Robinson made the switch to Derby County, who have been promoted to the Championship for next season after finishing second behind Portsmouth, from Dungannon Swifts in 2021 having also spent time in the youth ranks at Portadown.

The 19-year-old made a senior debut under Manchester United and England legend Wayne Rooney during the 2021/22 campaign – a season where he was also named Scholar of the Year – and while he wasn’t able to add to his first team league appearances this term, Football Insider have reported that Derby and Robinson are in advanced talks over a contract extension.

Robinson’s current deal at Pride Park is up in June, but the Northern Ireland U21 international is highly-rated and the Rams are now hoping to get the talented youngster on their books long-term.

He made his Swifts debut as a late substitute against Glenavon in May 2021 – just a matter of days before the move to England was confirmed.

Speaking during his maiden senior Derby pre-season last summer, Robinson said: “It was a very proud moment for me and my family (signing a professional contract) but I'm not just happy with that – I want to earn another one and keep going and keep working hard and keep making them and myself proud. I just need to keep working so that I can achieve that.

"We have people like Conor Hourihane, Sonny Bradley and James Collins here and they stepped up for their speeches and told us about their careers and how proud they are to have played at high levels and won trophies and I want to be like that too, so I just need to keep working hard.”

The likes of Conor Bradley, Sam Anderson and Terry Devlin – all products of the successful academy at Stangmore Park – have also made switches across the water in recent years with the former becoming a Premier League star at Anfield.