AT the end of a season that has seen Middlesbrough's youngsters come of age, Ray Parlour has identified David Wheater as the club's latest "star in the making".

Wheater, who spent a month of this season on loan at Doncaster, made his third senior Boro start in Wednesday night's 1-1 draw at Bolton.

And, while the likes of Adam Johnson and Ross Turnbull impressed at the Reebok Stadium, the 19-year-old stole the show with a mature and disciplined performance that shackled England hopeful Kevin Davies.

Stockton-born Wheater, an England Under-17 international, is slightly beyond fellow teenager Matthew Bates in terms of development in the senior ranks.

But with the youngster expected to feature again as Steve McClaren continues to rest some of his leading lights at Fulham tomorrow, one of his most experienced team-mates has tipped him for the very top.

"David's going to be a good player," said Parlour, who should know a thing or two about spotting talent as he prepares to draw the curtain on his 13th season in the game. "You can spot them a mile off and he certainly fits into that mould.

"He's good on the ball, he's tall and he's good in the air - he's got everything you would want in a young centre-half.

"I think he's going to be one hell of a player, a star of the future. He just has to learn a few things about positioning and reading the game, but that will come as he gets older."

Along with the likes of Bates, Andrew Taylor and Tony McMahon, Wheater is benefiting from working alongside two of the most experienced centre-halves in the game.

Gareth Southgate and Ugo Ehiogu boast more than 30 years of professional football between them and, as the duo draw towards the end of their playing careers, they are perfectly positioned to assist the Boro youngsters' development.

"I can't imagine anyone better for them to look up to than Gareth and Ugo," agreed Parlour. "They're two perfect centre-halves to watch and learn from.

"If David is watching what Gareth does in games, and how much energy he devotes to training, he'll see what it takes to be a top-class centre-half."

Middlesbrough's most successful season ever might have created a severe case of fixture congestion, but every cloud has a silver lining and the plethora of games in recent weeks has enabled McClaren to give his youngsters invaluable Premiership experience.

More will be involved at Fulham tomorrow - even the likes of Jason Kennedy and Danny Graham could be involved at some stage - and Parlour insists they will return to pre-season training far stronger for their first-team involvement.

"It's great that the young lads are getting their chance," he said. "And they're not just playing fairly low-key cup games. They're playing in the cut and thrust of the Premier League and that can only be good for them.

"At a lot of big clubs, the youngsters don't get a chance like this. But they still have to take it. In many ways, the most impressive thing has been the way in which they've taken their chance.

"I don't think the manager will be scared to put them into any game now. Sometimes, deciding whether or not to risk a young kid can be a manager's nightmare. That isn't the case here at Middlesbrough. The manager knows they can do it because they've done it before."