'Biggest achievement possible' – Tom Fellows on West Brom promotion hopes

The 21-year-old has enjoyed a meteoric rise over the last 12 months at his boyhood club.

Twelve months ago he was still awaiting a league debut under Carlos Corberan but had given several impressive displays in pre-season.

Since January, however, when regular starts have been plentiful, Fellows has emerged as one of Albion's key players, a regular assister of goals, and won his first caps and scored at England under-21 level.

Corberan's unbeaten side are top of the pile after six games ahead of Saturday lunchtime's trip to Sheffield Wednesday and the starlet winger considered the prospect of going all the way with the Baggies.

"The Championship is so tough and doesn't even really get going until probably around Christmas sometimes, but you've got to be in amongst it to have a chance," Fellows said.

"It's been a really good start but we know we've still got a long, long way to go. Hopefully we can keep going.

"After coming so close last season, it definitely fuels you a bit to want to go that one step further.

"To get there at the club I've grown up in would really feel like the biggest achievement possible."

Fellows has made the right wing position his own at The Hawthorns, ousting club captain Jed Wallace's place as a regular starter in the process.

By the run-in last season he was one of Corberan's go-to attacking outlets and an important part of the side that pulled up short against Southampton in the play-offs.

Trickster Fellows has wasted no time to take off in his first full season as a senior regular, though, and leads the Championship charts for assist with four from the opening six games – as Baggies striker Josh Maja joins him at the of the reckoning for scoring. Three of those assists have come for Albion's in-form marksman.

Corberan has no shortage of options in wide positions, with Wallace, Grady Diangana, Mikey Johnston and Lewis Dobbin all pushing for involvement on the flanks.

The winger, from Longbridge in Birmingham, saw his form strong enough for a late call to England's under-21s ranks as an injury replacement having only made his under-20s bow earlier in 2024.

Fellows won two caps alongside a hosts of Premier League regulars and scored the fourth goal in a 4-1 victory over Austria. Lee Carsley, currently interim boss of England's senior side, was under-21s boss previously and watched Fellows in action at The Hawthorns last season.

"It's not been too bad!" Smiled Albion's winger. "It's been a special couple of weeks and very enjoyable.

"It was good to even be drafted in, I know it was a bit late but it was still great to come in later in the camp along with all those good players, it was good for me to see the level of those players, a lot of them are playing at a really high level.

"So to have a week among those players and learn bits from them, see what areas I need to improve was good."

He added: "Obviously it was a bit nerve-racking at first but it was a great experience and to play and score was really, really special.

"They (England's senior team) train on the pitch next-door so we can see little bits, even when you're training you'll have a little glance over to see what they are doing. It's good to see the pathway that players in the 21s can progress to the first team if they do well."