A TYLDESLEY teenager has signed a two-year deal with reigning Scottish champions Glasgow Rangers.

Sixteen-year-old Sam McMahon put pen to paper with the Scottish giants this week, after a successful trial had peaked the club’s interest in the young striker.

Following a number of knock backs, the former Moorside Rangers junior did not give up on his dream of becoming a professional footballer after being released by Burnley FC in December last year, where he had been on the books since the age of nine.

The contract is the result of a long and difficult road, having been rejected by Bury, Blackpool and Rochdale before making his breakthrough at Doncaster Rovers.

His mother, Lisa Power, said: “I think he has achieved, with hard work and determination, a dream that is beyond most people’s grasps.

“He never let his head drop or his determination falter and when he was having a really rough ride he never stopped forging ahead to achieve every young lad’s dream.”

The Moorside High School pupil signed the two-year contract at the weekend and was in the crowd when Rangers lifted their 53rd Scottich title at Ibrox.