St Patrick's Athletic under-17 defender Ryan Burke joins Birmingham City

St Patrick's Athletic under-17s full-back Ryan Burke has signed terms with English Championship side Birmingham City.

The 16-year-old has signed a two-year deal with the midlands club and will move in July when the transfer window opens for English clubs.

Burke captained the Saints in his final game for the club last Wednesday as they sauntered to a 3-1 win over Dublin rivals Bohemians at the Oscar Traynor pitches in Coolock.

"I'm really looking forward to it,” Burke told the Saints' official website.

“I've been working towards a move to England for a few years and have really worked hard since I joined St Pat's last year.

“I'm delighted that the move has come off and I have a big two years ahead of me."

The teenager began his schoolboy career with Crumlin United, a partner club of the Saints, and spent four years with St Joseph's Boys before moving to the Inchicore club in 2016.

He credited his time with Pats as improving his performance all over the pitch and a key factor in allowing him to earn his move across the water.

"I've improved hugely in my year at St Pats.

“One of my main aims was to improve physically which I have thanks to the work with the strength and conditioning coaches, and of course all of the work on the pitch.

“I've also been taking a lot of the set pieces and managed to get some assists which has been another plus."

Pats under-17 manager Jamie Moore commended Burke's professionalism and work ethic, and cites him as an example to other aspiring professionals.

"It's excellent news for Ryan. He's been fantastic since he joined us last July and is one of the best young professionals I've ever coached.

"Ryan lives his life like any young aspiring footballer should and fully deserves his move. He trains at 100%, is always on time and is always one of our best performers in training, in the gym and most importantly on the pitch."

Birmingham City's Carl McNally added: "As a club, we would like to thank everyone at St Pats and his former club St Joseph's Boys for making the transfer go through as smoothly as possible.

“Both clubs were easy to negotiate with and had Ryan's best interests at heart. Hopefully this can be the start of a great relationship between our two clubs."