The club which beat Sheffield United in a pre-season friendly this year competes in the Northern Counties East league and they invited players who impressed manager Steven Toyne in a number of training sessions to join their depleted squad.

The players handpicked by the former Chesterfield man were, central defender Daniel O'Brien, striker Matt Thompson and Chris Burns who can play on either wing.

Third year student and central midfielder Oliver Wheatly-O'Neill was also selected, which provided him with a chance to forge a new start for himself, after seeing his potential in the Fulham youth set up disintegrate with the disbanding of the under 19s side.

The 21-year-old said: "It came at a bad time for me because I wasn't ready to compete for the senior squad, and so I was lucky to have my education to fall back on.

"As well as playing for Dinnington, I have also been contacted to train with Matlock Town, which could lead to a more formal agreement with a contract and wages…it could be a possible stepping stone for me."
O'Neill's hopes of using Dinnington as a step to greater things is not unheard of, as Toyne explained how he has lost nine players to league clubs, and how time at the club can be compared to work experience for budding footballers.

He said: "I don't hold on to them if they can go on and earn some money, we don't want to hold anyone back.
"It's like work experience for them, they learn how cope with mens football."

Toyne described how the impressive student contingent at his disposal made up for their inexperience with enthusiasm and managed to fit into what was already a very tight, close-knit group of players with ease.
He said: "At first they can be a bit naive but they more than make up for it with skill and athleticism.

"Our squad has always been very tight, our players even gave up their free time to help build our ground from scratch, and the boys from the University have fitted right in."

Meanwhile Sheffield's first team recorded a 1-0 win over bitter rivals Sheffield Hallam thanks to a goal from Matt Thompson, fresh from his own Dinnington exploits, in their final meeting before the crunch Varsity game next year.

O'Neill reflected on the team's performance and looks ahead to that all-important Varsity encounter in March.

He said: "We were quite comfortable today, Hallam were unusually slow to the ball and didn't play well, but that's credit to us.
"Now we're on a high and we know we can beat them."

This article was contributed by the Steel Press. For more stories by the University of Sheffield paper visit: http://shefsteel.com/