Football Academies. A Boulevard of Broken Dreams?

[UlleyMiller]

Long gone are the days when we get a batch of young players coming through breaking into the 1st team. Last one was Wiles next one? It's getting more difficult for us to attract those type of younger players. Can't remember the last manager either who gave enough young players a chance to progress further here.

...Bramall (Arsenal), Viking (Villa), Humphreys (City), Rathbone (Manyoo), Barlaser (Newcastle) were all about 19/20 when they were discarded....

Bramall - Colchester picked him up.
Viktor - Leicester initially, and then us at the age of 21 after zero games for them.
Humphreys - Zulte (Belgian League, ranked 9th in Europe) before we got him from them at 23.
Rathbone - Rochdale.
Barlaser - Us, after zero games for Newcastle.

Nobody is pretending this is easy, but these are a handful we've seen who followed this route, and every one of them would have seen us as a decent option (if they didn't come here initially). How is dumping a next-to-useless academy for something like this doing anything which is costlier, more difficult, or challenging for a manager?

[Brin]

Long gone are the days when we get a batch of young players coming through breaking into the 1st team. Last one was Wiles next one? It's getting more difficult for us to attract those type of younger players. Can't remember the last manager either who gave enough young players a chance to progress further here.

RU66 its not all about any Manager not giving young players the chance to progress these days, its also owners of clubs who always want nay expect, instant success these days. To a point, you can almost see the reasoning why certain Managers, and weve got one, who only look to use seasoned players 30+ because they belive they will deliver for them. Our team this season is evidence that this doesn't always work.

[LittleSquirt]

Two thought provoking programmes. Don't know what are called but were on terrestrial tv. One about Palace Academy. Young kids fighting to stay in the next age group, under lots of pressure rather than enjoying their football care free. Interviews with the kids all want to be a Premier footballer, earn ?100,000s a week, buy houses and cars and watches etc. Totally fed on the high life, the big pay cheque and there being nothing outside Premier league football. They could earn a good wage in L1 but they wouldn't know it, or don't want it. They want Premier or nothing. Big clubs train them to be Premiership players, not footballers who could play at a lower level. Those who don't make it are discarded, but with some help to find a lower level club. But withdraw the premier status and some don't want to be L2 footballers.

The other was about Gifton Noel-Williams' centre for rejects. There was a Rotherham reject there. Now some of those had attitude or discipline problems and you can see why they were discarded by their League clubs. Others had had injuries. Others just weren't good enough. One kid got signed by Watford, but I don't think he made many appearances.

Both programmes showed there is a massive pool of players who don't get signed for various reasons. And there must be a big pool of talent at big clubs who have the skill but have grown up on Premier football and don't have the desire to make a living as a L1 player.

As for us, our kids don't even get to test themselves against kids at other Champ/L1 clubs. They play Halifax and York etc and get loaned out to tier 7 and 8 non league teams. So hardly a surprise when they grow up playing for and against clubs at that level that they end up only good enough for that level.

[Townerslovechild]

I`ve said for years that the only way for us to have any chance of climbing the food chain,is to breed our own players.
We have done this in the past,but it seems we were more willing to give youth a chance back then,maybe the pressure to win means we won`t take a chance on a kid now.
Back in the 70`s & 80`s we definitely brought more kids through,not a huge amount,but a damn sight more than we do now,even in Ronnie`s first stint quite a few a lads made the first team,if we have a youth team,then we have to give them a chance.
There`s always been thousands of kids released by bigger clubs,perhaps we should target these more than we do,at least they will have been coached properly.
If this Duncan lad all that,then get in the team now,what is there to lose,otherwise we will never know if he`s any good,even the lad probably doesn`t know,give him a bloody chance.

[Brin]

I`ve said for years that the only way for us to have any chance of climbing the food chain,is to breed our own players.
We have done this in the past,but it seems we were more willing to give youth a chance back then,maybe the pressure to win means we won`t take a chance on a kid now.
Back in the 70`s & 80`s we definitely brought more kids through,not a huge amount,but a damn sight more than we do now,even in Ronnie`s first stint quite a few a lads made the first team,if we have a youth team,then we have to give them a chance.
There`s always been thousands of kids released by bigger clubs,perhaps we should target these more than we do,at least they will have been coached properly.
If this Duncan lad all that,then get in the team now,what is there to lose,otherwise we will never know if he`s any good,even the lad probably doesn`t know,give him a bloody chance.

TLC, one player for me who should be given a chance if only in a cameo role of the last 20 in a game for us is Josh Ayres. A tall strong unit of a young man who clearly gives his all and there is definitely something about him that shows promise. He shows as much effort as JCH/Hugill so why send him out of the club?

We are finishing mid to low table, nothing to lose so give youth a chance. Evans is doing is level best to offload ALL our youth in order to use up what wages they were being paid, to use on next seasons budget. Quoting to the Tizer the other week, he clearly cannot see one of the youths? breaking through the grade with us. so suggested he went out to a non league club to seek another contract elsewhere.

Could he have given him a chance of a few games as we wind down the season or is he still thinking we could get sucked into the relegation scrap so wants all his 30+ heroes in the side?

[Derbymiller]

Evans will never bring youth through and it wouldn't surprise me if he has convinced his mate that it is too risky. It would be very interesting if the club surveyed all the season ticket holders to ask
1. Do you think SE is the right man for the club
2. Will you renew next season?
3. If not why not?
4. If not would you renew if SE wasn't the manager?
5. Do you think that RUFC develops and brings through enough young players?

[Brin]

Evans will never bring youth through and it wouldn't surprise me if he has convinced his mate that it is too risky. It would be very interesting if the club surveyed all the season ticket holders to ask
1. Do you think SE is the right man for the club
2. Will you renew next season?
3. If not why not?
4. If not would you renew if SE wasn't the manager?
5. Do you think that RUFC develops and brings through enough young players?

Derbs Good morning. excellent points but this would never happen because the answers would be,

1.No
2. No
3. See answer 1.
4. Yes
4. Definitely a big fat No

[OneJohnnyQuinn]

Evans will never bring youth through and it wouldn't surprise me if he has convinced his mate that it is too risky. It would be very interesting if the club surveyed all the season ticket holders to ask
1. Do you think SE is the right man for the club
2. Will you renew next season?
3. If not why not?
4. If not would you renew if SE wasn't the manager?
5. Do you think that RUFC develops and brings through enough young players?

6 do you think RUFC is now a soulless club

[Brin]

6 do you think RUFC is now a soulless club

6. It is looking that way more and more each day, meanwhile, the Captain (Chairman) has definitely put his binoculars down and were heading for an iceberg.

[RU66]

Warney didn't bring them through like I've said only Wiles. Played Yates out of position that gave a reason to sell him. Evans last window pointless bringing Mpanzu & Gore in on loan should have kept McGuckin & Hatton.