NEWPORT County boss Justin Edinburgh is confident he can win the battle to keep defender Regan Poole – and believes the academy graduate is cut from the same cloth as Lee Evans.

The 16-year old made his second first team appearance for the Amber Army on Tuesday in the Exiles’ 2-1 reverse to League One Swindon Town.

Poole, who usually finds himself up against 15-year old strikers for Exeter City or Gloucester in the youth leagues, was pitted against former Spurs striker and England U21 international Jon Obika and acquitted himself well.

The central defender has already spent a week on trial with Manchester United, who have requested another look at the scholar, while a host of Premier League and Championship scouts were in attendance on Tuesday, including representatives for Crystal Palace and Fulham, the Cottagers also having requested Poole on trial.

However, Newport boss Edinburgh believes that his track record in both picking youngsters and helping them to make the next step in their careers will ensure County can keep their hot prospect a while longer.

“We pitched Regan Poole in against two top strikers in Jon Obika and Andy Williams and he acquitted himself very well again,” Edinburgh said.

“At the moment I can’t argue with the view that Regan is in the best place he could be despite all the interest in him.

“While he’s playing in the first team, while he’s developing in and around the first team group and being correctly managed by me and the staff, then I think the right thing is to keep him at the football club.

“Until, if and when, something comes along, where we have to say that every player has a price and if it is right for Regan - we’ve always done the right thing by the player and the club – we want him here.

“We did that with Lee Evans and Conor Washington, we developed them here. And while Regan is playing and is playing well, he’s needed by us and this is the best place for him to be.”

Edinburgh didn’t shy away from the comparison with Evans, now starring in the Championship for Wolves and blooded by Edinburgh at 17 with County in a relegation battle in the Conference.

“He has a similar level of quality to Lee and the big similarity is the temperament,” he said.

“Lee came in at 17 and Regan is only just 16 and to have the composure that he’s shown in training and the two matches he’s played, they are a testament to him and the sign of a very good player in the making.”

Edinburgh was disappointed to bow out of the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy on Tuesday, the Exiles losing to League One Swindon, despite Yan Klukowski’s late strike.

He explained: “We can take positives from the game, as a manager you need to do that and for the disruption we had in the last 48 hours before the game and then during the game, I thought the players gave a good account of themselves against an excellent League One team who just thumped a very strong Sheffield United.”