Notts County should join Derby County and Bolton Wanderers in race for non-league star | OneFootball

Ilkeston Town's Tom Carsons is attracting interest from several big clubs, Notts should join the chasing pack for the young striker.

Heading into the January transfer window, bringing another striker to Meadow Lane would’ve been right at the top of Notts County’s list of priorities.

With David McGoldrick unable to play week in, week out at the age of 37 and Alassana Jatta likely to miss more games due to international call-ups, the Magpies need an extra pair of hands to help shoulder the burden at the top end of the pitch.

This week’s addition of Hull City forward Will Jarvis, who impressed in a loan spell with League of Ireland side Shelbourne in the early part of 2024, represents a good start to Notts’ business. However, with Jarvis capable of playing out wide, in an attacking midfield role, or as a striker and it currently unclear where Stuart Maynard plans to fit him in, it wouldn’t be at all surprising to see another frontman come in.

The Magpies should turn their attention to local non-league side Ilkeston Town, where a fairly cost-effective and potentially very exciting option could be sat right under their noses.

According to Football Insider, the Robins’ 23-year-old striker Tom Cursons is the subject of interest from a whole array of EFL sides. Notts should look to join the chasing pack and attempt to replicate the Macaulay Langstaff deal that brought them so much success.

Tom Cursons is attracting interest from several EFL clubs

Ilkeston have enjoyed a resurgence as a club in recent years and currently find themselves right in the thick of a promotion push to reach the National League North.

The Robins are currently sat fourth in the Northern Premier League, thanks in large part to their striker Cursons, who already has 19 league goals to his name in 2024/25.

With Cursons out of contract at the end of the season and having expressed his desire to make the step-up into the Football League, Ilkeston look set to be inundated with offers in the January window.

They’ve already rejected several bids throughout the early part of the season for their star man, who forced his way further into the spotlight with a ruthless nine-minute hat-trick in Ilkeston’s 5-0 win over local rivals Basford United on New Year’s Day.

Given Cursons’ goalscoring feats, it’s no surprise at all to see several Football League clubs chasing him. According to Football Insider, Derby County, Bolton Wanderers, Barnsley and Peterborough United are all among the interested parties.

With clubs like that sniffing around, it currently looks extremely unlikely that Cursons will still be an Ilkeston player by the end of the month.

Notts should join the race for Cursons

Since Jamie Vardy first broke onto the EFL scene with Leicester City back in 2012, stories of players rising through the ranks of non-league to find success within the professional game are becoming more commonplace.

Wycombe Wanderers frontman Richard Kone has been the latest to hit the headlines, having made an impressive start to the season in League One.

The Magpies need no reminding of how valuable the non-league market can prove to be, having secured their own remarkable piece of business by bringing Macaulay Langstaff to the club.

Considering the locality of the two clubs and their need for a striker, Notts should seriously consider joining the list of sides looking to raid Ilkeston in January.

Given that he’s out of contract in the summer, it likely won’t require a significant outlay to secure Cursons’ signature, although Notts will definitely want to avoid getting into a bidding war with several clubs higher up the pyramid.

While the step-up to Football League level would undoubtedly be a huge test for Cursons, that hasn’t deterred Notts in the past. The striker is currently scoring for fun just one league below the National League North, where Langstaff first caught Notts’ eye.

Notts are understandably a less attractive proposition than most of the teams who are currently interested in Cursons, but what they do have on their side is the ability to offer more playing time and a more measured step-up in quality.

It would be admirable if Cursons does back himself to jump up to Championship or League One level and immediately start making matchday squads and impacting games. However, if he’s interested in a more moderate leap up the pyramid, to a level where he could potentially make a name for himself straight away, Notts could be the perfect fit.

The Magpies have demonstrated in recent years that they won’t hold players back who want to move further up the pyramid. Langstaff, Ruben Rodrigues (pictured), Kyle Wootton and Cal Roberts all ultimately left to pursue an opportunity at a higher level of football.

If Cursons sees the value in proving himself at League Two level before taking a shot at the Championship, a move to Notts could be a fairly interesting proposition for him, especially considering its locality.

From Notts’ perspective, they should be jumping at any potential opportunity to strike a deal which could potentially hand them a man whose career is already on a similar trajectory to Langstaff’s.