Cody Johnson leaves: 2 players Stockport County should loan out this summer

It’s set to be an important summer for Stockport County as they embark on their League One adventure and some of their younger stars will be hopeful of loan moves to boost their first-team experience.

A number of key Edgeley Park performers were released at the end of the 2023/24 season as manager Dave Challinor and director of football Simon Wilson look to rejig the Hatters’ squad ahead of the new campaign.

That has made room for the likes of new signings Jay Mingi and Jayden Fevrier, with more expected through the door over the coming weeks.

Dealing with new incoming talent and the jump in division means some of County’s academy prospects may be keen on a temporary switch away from the club to gain further experience. Here, FLW looks at those most likely to be eyeing up a loan move…

Cody Johnson should, by now, have a full National League season under his belt with Rochdale, having agreed a loan move with the Greater Manchester club this time last year.

However, having completed pre-season with the fifth-tier team, the 20-year-old was recalled almost immediately after the season began and thrown into the squad to face Sheffield Wednesday in the Carabao Cup.

He performed well, famously running rings around Barry Bannan in midfield, earning him further opportunities in the league in the following days. But as formerly injured players were returning, Johnson’s minutes were diminishing.

The young midfielder did gain another loan move in the latter stages of the season, moving out to National League North outfit Scarborough Athletic and picking up a handful of appearances, but it seems it was a level below where the club initially wanted him, and may not have been as productive as the original Rochdale deal appeared.

Having struggled for minutes in League Two, the jump to the third tier is unlikely to favour Johnson’s minutes at Edgeley Park in the coming season.

He is clearly a talented young prospect, something that was recognised by County in his one-year extension amid numerous big-name departures, but senior minutes are the only way he will build his way towards regular first-team action for the Hatters.

Another loan move seems sensible for Johnson, and a full season in the starting XI of a quality side will give the club a better idea of where he’s at, where he’s likely to go and the best next step for the midfielder this time next year, just as the case was with young defender Ethan Pye.

At 17 years old, Ashton Mee is a few years behind Johnson in the development process, but is the next in the line of promising young talent coming out of the County academy.

The midfielder has already been handed his senior debut, despite having yet to reach adulthood, a sign that the club have strong faith in his potential.

Despite that faith, he is currently the youngest player officially listed in the Hatters’ first-team squad and has so far operated in central midfield, where County are currently most stacked.

Minutes in League One will be difficult for Johnson to come by, and Mee is likely to be one behind him in the pecking order as things currently stand.

Having any first-team experience at Mee’s age is a feat to be applauded, but the quickest route to developing his potential will be through consistent senior game time, something much more likely away from Edgeley Park for the 2024/25 season.

As previously mentioned, County have already laid down the blueprint in Pye, who went away for a full season at Gateshead in the National League, returned to the Hatters, and subsequently made himself one of the most important players in the side.

It might not go that way every time but, in Mee’s case, he is clearly beginning to outgrow youth football and consistent senior experience will be his necessary next step.