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Academy Thread 2024/2025


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14 hours ago, Ghost of Clough said:

If they had all stayed, Williams, Gordon and Kellyman would be playing regularly for our first team. Scanlon and Sharpe would be starting for our U21s and arguably pushing for spots in the first team squad. Kaba has had serious issues with injuries since his move. Whilst Grant would have been sandwiched between Evans and JThompson and likely followed a similar path to the one he's had.

Although I liked the look of Williams when he first broke through, he hasn't played a first XI game in two and a half years since leaving. He's on loan to Burton with an obligation to buy, yet still hasn't made an appearance for them in L1. I think it's a bit of a stretch to say that he would be playing regularly for our first team.

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50 minutes ago, ivo_knoflicek said:

Although I liked the look of Williams when he first broke through, he hasn't played a first XI game in two and a half years since leaving. He's on loan to Burton with an obligation to buy, yet still hasn't made an appearance for them in L1. I think it's a bit of a stretch to say that he would be playing regularly for our first team.

Not even with our LB issues over the past few seasons? He would have been ahead of Sibley in the pecking order at LB IMO. I'm not saying he'd be a regular starter, but he'd be in most squads and play often due to his versatility.

I'm not sure where you're getting your info from... he's made 9 apps this season for Burton (7 starts and 5 full 90s)

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3 hours ago, Ghost of Clough said:

Not even with our LB issues over the past few seasons? He would have been ahead of Sibley in the pecking order at LB IMO. I'm not saying he'd be a regular starter, but he'd be in most squads and play often due to his versatility.

I'm not sure where you're getting your info from... he's made 9 apps this season for Burton (7 starts and 5 full 90s)

My mistake re Burton - apologies. However I’m not convinced he’d have played ahead of Sibley last season, and he definitely wouldn’t be “playing regularly” for us in the Championship now.

Hope he comes good, especially as the dream move to Chelsea seems to have gone the way it does for so many young players who they snap up.

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21 minutes ago, Steve Buckley’s Dog said:

Pratting about at the back seems ubiquitous and obligatory now doesn’t it. Are all academy players coached to give at least one goal away in this manner? 

Probably! We do a bit of it ourselves, especially when Jack Thompson is playing. 

If you want to get spotted by a big club, it's important. 

However, I sat next to an agent at the previous under 21s game (who used to be a decent centre back) and he said he hates it, because at least 80% of the players at academy level will end up in non-league, who don't want all that "fannying around"! 

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2 minutes ago, angieram said:

Probably! We do a bit of it ourselves, especially when Jack Thompson is playing. 

If you want to get spotted by a big club, it's important. 

However, I sat next to an agent at the previous under 21s game (who used to be a decent centre back) and he said he hates it, because at least 80% of the players at academy level will end up in non-league, who don't want all that "fannying around"! 

Was that Chris Morgan? I agree. Most players aren’t good enough to do it which is why we see goals like that or like the hilarious Bolton one from a couple of weeks ago or on any episode of match of the Day.  I miss hitting it to the big man to knock down for the little fast one. 

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2 hours ago, ivo_knoflicek said:

My mistake re Burton - apologies. However I’m not convinced he’d have played ahead of Sibley last season, and he definitely wouldn’t be “playing regularly” for us in the Championship now.

Hope he comes good, especially as the dream move to Chelsea seems to have gone the way it does for so many young players who they snap up.

But surely if he’d been with us through our relegation he’d have gained minutes which would provide experience that would speed up development? We don’t know where he’d be now had he not gone and joined a side with 6579373 academy players

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20 hours ago, angieram said:
21 hours ago, Steve Buckley’s Dog said:

Pratting about at the back seems ubiquitous and obligatory now doesn’t it. Are all academy players coached to give at least one goal away in this manner? 

Probably! We do a bit of it ourselves, especially when Jack Thompson is playing. 

If you want to get spotted by a big club, it's important. 

However, I sat next to an agent at the previous under 21s game (who used to be a decent centre back) and he said he hates it, because at least 80% of the players at academy level will end up in non-league, who don't want all that "fannying around"! 

I would have hoped that after all of his years as a professional Chris Morgan might by now have grasped the fact that the main focus of the academies is to bring their scholars through to play at the highest level possible, whether that may be the Premier, EFL or below. Their ultimate aim is to prepare them for the top of the pyramid, not the bottom. That's why they follow the elite professional coaching programme. Their focus is not on preparing the majority for non-league football to which they will quite easily adapt if that proves to be their destiny.

In contrast, re Jack Thompson, Bradley Johnson commented last season that having him in goal is as good as having an extra defender because he is so good with the ball at his feet. But of course football is all about opinions and opinions may vary.

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1 hour ago, Spender said:

I would have hoped that after all of his years as a professional Chris Morgan might by now have grasped the fact that the main focus of the academies is to bring their scholars through to play at the highest level possible, whether that may be the Premier, EFL or below. Their ultimate aim is to prepare them for the top of the pyramid, not the bottom. That's why they follow the elite professional coaching programme. Their focus is not on preparing the majority for non-league football to which they will quite easily adapt if that proves to be their destiny.

In contrast, re Jack Thompson, Bradley Johnson commented last season that having him in goal is as good as having an extra defender because he is so good with the ball at his feet. But of course football is all about opinions and opinions may vary.

Nothing wrong with being good with your feet but two defenders and a goalkeeper passing the ball between themselves in the six yard box simply isn’t for me! 

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1 hour ago, Spender said:

I would have hoped that after all of his years as a professional Chris Morgan might by now have grasped the fact that the main focus of the academies is to bring their scholars through to play at the highest level possible, whether that may be the Premier, EFL or below. Their ultimate aim is to prepare them for the top of the pyramid, not the bottom. That's why they follow the elite professional coaching programme. Their focus is not on preparing the majority for non-league football to which they will quite easily adapt if that proves to be their destiny.

In contrast, re Jack Thompson, Bradley Johnson commented last season that having him in goal is as good as having an extra defender because he is so good with the ball at his feet. But of course football is all about opinions and opinions may vary.

Oh, yes, I agree about aiming high and Jack has great skill levels, if he can just grow a bit he could be a great keeper (and still a good one if he doesn't.) 

But I can also see Chris's point from an agent's perspective. For those many that don't make it, they aren't necessarily ready for the rough and tumble of non-league. I think of players like Will Grewall Pollard, who looked quite a skilled left back, went to Alfreton after leaving Derby and could never really break into the team. Went to Gresley, played one game, not sure where he is now? 

Harrison Solomon, promising centre half, left Derby, went on the US college circuit, doesn't seem to be playing now, though I was told he's doing a bit of modelling. 

Although Chris played at a fairly high level, he was always a no-nonsense defender, a bit like Curtis Davies and our current under 21 boss, Jake Buxton. These sort of players are needed, even at Championship level.

I suppose from a Cat 1 academy point of view, that one gem that does make it to the very top is much more likely to make a profit on the club's investment than any number of Curtises or Buckos!

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Just now, angieram said:

Oh, yes, I agree about aiming high and Jack has great skill levels, if he can just grow a bit he could be a great keeper (and still a good one if he doesn't.) 

But I can also see Chris's point from an agent's perspective. For those many that don't make it, they aren't necessarily ready for the rough and tumble of non-league. I think of players like Will Grewall Pollard, who looked quite a skilled left back, went to Alfreton after leaving Derby and could never really break into the team. Went to Gresley, played one game, not sure where he is now? 

Harrison Solomon, promising centre half, left Derby, went on the US college circuit, doesn't seem to be playing now, though I was told he's doing a bit of modelling. 

Although Chris played at a fairly high level, he was always a no-nonsense defender, a bit like Curtis Davies and our current under 21 boss, Jake Buxton. These sort of players are needed, even at Championship level.

I suppose from a Cat 1 academy point of view, that one gem that does make it to the very top is much more likely to make a profit on the club's investment than any number of Curtises or Buckos!

Harrison’s playing for Gresley at the minute while trying to move universities in the states. 

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24 minutes ago, angieram said:

Although Chris played at a fairly high level, he was always a no-nonsense defender, a bit like Curtis Davies and our current under 21 boss, Jake Buxton. These sort of players are needed, even at Championship level.

I suppose from a Cat 1 academy point of view, that one gem that does make it to the very top is much more likely to make a profit on the club's investment than any number of Curtises or Buckos!

Curtis is actually a classic example of the rewards that academy investment can bring for clubs. He was a Wimbledon and Luton scholar who went on to play in  League Cup and FA Cup finals, over 150 games in the Premier League from the age of 20, 350 in the Championship and a hundred in League One with us and Cheltenham. On the way he attracted transfer fees of over £20m and was named in two England squads without making an appearance before bowing out with Sierra Leone last year. He wasn't from the school of hard knocks. Bucko did it from non-league like Jamie Vardy, Malcolm Christie and many others.  Ironically, Bucko is diametrically opposed to Chris Morgan's views. He's directing our U21 side and has bought into the system our academy plays; you will find no bigger advocate of the system. It's probably why Bucko is our youth coach trying to develop players to play at the highest level and Morgan is a football agent with a lot of his clients playing non-League.

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1 hour ago, Spender said:

Curtis is actually a classic example of the rewards that academy investment can bring for clubs. He was a Wimbledon and Luton scholar who went on to play in  League Cup and FA Cup finals, over 150 games in the Premier League from the age of 20, 350 in the Championship and a hundred in League One with us and Cheltenham. On the way he attracted transfer fees of over £20m and was named in two England squads without making an appearance before bowing out with Sierra Leone last year. He wasn't from the school of hard knocks. Bucko did it from non-league like Jamie Vardy, Malcolm Christie and many others.  Ironically, Bucko is diametrically opposed to Chris Morgan's views. He's directing our U21 side and has bought into the system our academy plays; you will find no bigger advocate of the system. It's probably why Bucko is our youth coach trying to develop players to play at the highest level and Morgan is a football agent with a lot of his clients playing non-League.

I'm not sure why you're attacking his opinion so strongly. I'm certainly regretting sharing it now. 

I do hear odd things that Bucko comes out with during games and even he appears to think there's a time and a place for remembering the basics! 

My original post in answer to @Steve Buckley’s Dog, did talk about balance but you only seem to have taken issue with one half of it.

As for Curtis, he didn't base his career on playing out from the back, which is where this discussion started, and for me, ends.

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