U18s: vintage not declared?

[VindePays2009]

I note with some concern that the U18s' record, prior to the Brentford game, is won 0, drawn 2, lost 3.

Doesn't sound like a vintage year (though to be fair, Cooper was plucked from their midst and given accelerated promotion).

Maybe we did the right thing in signing up so many recently, knowing that there was less quality in the pipeline.

I suppose that this gives comfort to the detractors of the Academy, but personally I find it a little worrying.

Let's hope that this age cohort picks up.

[MikeSB]

Is an academy discussion again which some get tired of reading but one problem is always the quality of the kids coming through with no guarantee that the millions spent on it and even more so now with Cat2, will yield the right calibre of players for L2, never mind L1 and higher where the club looks to sell on.

Only proves to me anyhow that coaching is only a very small part of the development and its natural ability that counts far more. That means looking far beyond the local area where most of them come from. If you take a 100 kids and none with any natural ability and it costs ten million, then is that money well spent or not?

[AlexLeicester]

It's cyclical and a bumpy ride. Last year's U21s was a vintage; this year's U18s may and should improve over the season.
I think it's impossible to judge on inconsistent performances at a young age. Who remembers those awful, lazy, wooden performances from one Master D. Ashton of this parish before the magical switch was turned on by Baker?

[AstonAlex]

Academies are bound to be cyclical in their production of talent. You only have to look at Manchester United who, after the crop of Becks, Butt, the Nevilles, Scholes and our very own Sav, have not produced that many in a single year of graduation since. Fallow periods are inevitable just as they are in any sport.

The fact that we take the majority of our players from a smaller population, even given the fact that we attract kids from all over Cheshire and into North Staffordshire and Shropshire, means that the chances of comtinuing to produce Ashtons every season are remote. However, as I have said on another thread, 5 years ago we seemed to have nobody in the pipeline, then along came Westwood, Murphy, Powell and Clayton. From the reports of the Under 21s from AlexLeicester it would seem that we have a few more about to break through that show equal promise so I am far from pessimistic and certainly would see the closure (or downgrading) of the Academy as a retrograde step.

B

[DGFG]

Seen 'em three times now and looks like a vintage crop to me!

at least as good as last year (which sets the bar pretty high) and possibly the best group since the Ashton Vaughan 2000 vintage with due respect to the group which reached the Youth Cup semis in 2004.

[bigroof]

Well they now have a record of won 3, drawn 4, lost 6, in their Development League, and the same group have won through to the 4th round of the FA Youth Cup.

They're a very good group, even without George Cooper, and I'd be surprised if 4 or 5 aren't offered professional terms in April/May.

Watching each of the Youth Cup games so far, and the Development League victory over Sheffield United recently, it's encouraging to see the group showing qualities beyond the excellent technique that we've come to expect.

[VindePays2009]

Heartened, from windswept Brittany, to see the latest result. The gelling seems to be happening.

Now if only the first team could do something similar tomorrow...

[MikeSB]

May I play devil's advocate?

Our results are still not that good really and we should remember that we are playing in a Cat2 academy league and not a PL one and so our graduates have to be as good as the best ones IF they are to get money for them which is the aim. Just how many graduates will there be from all the PL and CC academies that reach the age of 18 and how do we measure the quality? Presumably to be good enough for L1/L2 first?

Secondly. If we do sign 6 or 7 next year, how many will we have under 21 at the club all wanting to get games in the first team and will they get frustrated like Clayton did? Indeed ditto at all the other clubs with academies? Seems like there will be hundreds of 18 year old's looking to progress onwards and upwards. Maybe we treat them like a reserve team rather than a youth one?

Can we afford to have all of them? Should they not be at least good enough for L2 or the Conference where they could be loaned out to gain valuable exper

[out0lunch]

Mike why not come to the next Youth cup game and give your judgement on who will be the next Ashton/Powell