SHREWSBURY Town’s chief executive Matt Williams has branded Swindon Town’s offer for defender Connor Goldson as ‘derisory’.

Speaking to the Shropshire Star, Williams likened the bid to an April Fool’s joke and was quick to dismiss it yesterday.

The highly-rated 22-year-old, who has just the one-year left on his current deal at the New Meadow, has also attracted interest from Championship side Leeds United.

Williams has kept his valuation to himself, but it is believed that Leeds’ Liam Cooper is the benchmark for his evaluation.

United paid Chesterfield an undisclosed fee, reported to be between £500,000 and £750,000, last summer for the defender, who was the same age as Goldson is now, after guiding the Spireites to League One and being named in the League Two PFA Team of the Year.

The fee offered by Swindon has not been disclosed but it is thought to have fallen well short of what the Shrews are looking for.

"To say that the offer from Swindon was derisory would be an understatement, and it was rejected forthwith," said Williams.

"I had to check the calendar to see that it wasn't April Fool's Day.

"In fact, if it had been April 1st we'd have all fallen for it because I thought it was someone winding me up.

"We thank Swindon for their offer and wish them well in their recruitment for the summer and look forward to seeing them in December.

"But if they think Shrewsbury Town is a small club with no ambition that will sell their prized assets on the cheap then they're sadly mistaken.

"We're looking forwards, not backwards - yes, finances are tight under the Football League's Salary Cost Management Protocol, but we're a well-run club with no debt and we will not sell our best players for less than they're worth.”

Despite holding talks with Leeds about the Shrewsbury youth product, who has made more than 100 appearances for the club, no firm offer has been made from the Yorkshire outfit.

Williams has backed Goldson, who was in the PFA League Two Team of the Year last season, to play at the highest level and has admitted that the club will not stand in his way if the right offer comes in.

"Connor Goldson is one of the best central defenders outside the Championship,” he added.

"Having watched a lot of Championship football and above for a long time, Connor is more than good enough to play at a higher level and I'm not surprised by the interest in him and we fully expect it.

"We hope he will play for us at a higher level in time or if someone matches our valuation he'll go with our blessing.

"I fully expect there to be interest in a few of our players because we've got good players and we've assembled a squad of assets.

"Everyone has their price, but the chairman, the manager and myself are all on the same page when it comes to retaining our prized assets."