AZ Gull
@SeagullsAcademy @seagullsacademy.bsky.social
A couple of weeks ago Albion U-21s completed their league campaign with a resounding 4-1 win over Newcastle at St James’ Park. It was an upbeat note on which to finish an undoubtedly disappointing season results-wise. Of course, it is important to remember that the primary objective at U-21 level is player development; ultimately success will be measured by the progression of talent into the first team (or the flow of profit into the player trading figure in the annual accounts).
League
Albion, for the second season running, competed in Division Two of the Barclays U-21 Premier League. They struggled to find wins (and goals) in the league all season. Their final day victory did at least enable them to belatedly climb off the bottom of the table, finishing 11th out of 12 teams. Some will proclaim that as Albion are still a new kid on the block, expectations should remain modest. To counter this, it must be noted that Derby (who became a Category One academy at the same time as Albion, and were also enjoying just their second campaign at this level) won the division, finishing ahead of a very strong Arsenal side, with Swansea City third (who themselves were competing at this level for the very first time).
Albion won only two league matches out of twenty-two (the first was against Stoke and featured a strong line-up including Maenpaa, Holla, Ince, March and JFC). They scored 17 league goals, the lowest in either division. There were some bright spots; a creditable 1-1 draw at then-leaders WBA in late October; a 0-0 draw against the same opponents in January when the Baggies would have gone top with a win; and a 2-2 draw at leaders Derby in February when only an injury-time equalizer spared the Rams’ blushes. But there were also a number of disappointing results, not least the 1-1 draw at Crawley in March against what was essentially a Newcastle U-18 side.
P: 22 W: 2 D: 8 L: 12 F: 17 A: 36 GD: -19 PTS: 14 Final Position: 11th of 12
Cups
In the Parafix Sussex Senior Cup, Albion went out at the first hurdle when they conceded two goals in the final fifteen minutes to lose 2-1 at Three Bridges.
Albion also competed in the U-21 Premier League Cup and, despite facing three opponents from Division One, enjoyed just about their best performances of the season. Norwich City were dispatched 4-1 at the Amex with some fine goals including an absolute peach from Jack Harper, his first for the club. A very late injury-time equalizer against Everton earned Albion extra-time and an eventual win on penalties after a 2-2 draw, which set up a quarter-final tie back on Merseyside against Liverpool five days later. Albion led 3-1 but were pegged back and the Reds went on to record a 4-3 victory after extra-time.
Review by position (figures relate to league and cup, 26 matches in total)
Goalkeeper: Christian Walton appeared in half the matches, making 13 appearances. He had originally joined Bury on a season-long loan in July, but a combination of a groin injury and loss of form saw him recalled in September. A further six weeks at Plymouth followed but from January he remained with Albion.
Niki Maenpaa and Harry Doherty both made 3 appearances (Doherty joined Hastings on loan for a month in February) and the head mental Josh Smith also made 3 appearances before joining Merstham on loan in November where he remained for the rest of the season (the website report from one of their opponents said he had "..played the fool, looked a clown and ended Saturday’s clash as his side’s hero..").
2nd-year scholar Bailey Vose made his full debut at this level against Fulham in December. He had just returned from a very successful two months on loan in the first team at Whyteleafe where his arrival coincided with a marked upturn in results.
Young pro Robert Sanchez also made his debut at this level when he played against Newcastle at Crawley in March.
Full-backs: Rob Hunt was ever-present at right-back (nobody else made even 20 appearances). Hunt was also the regular captain of the side. He just missed out on the first-team trip to the French Alps in July but was 19th man for the Capital One Cup ties against Southend and Walsall and was named as a substitute against Hull in the FA Cup.
1st-year pro Dylan Barnett made 18 starts at left-back. Jesse Starkey played the position 5 times and Adam Chicksen played the first 2 matches of the season (getting himself sent-off for two bookings in five minutes against Swansea and not being seen at this level again). 2nd-year scholar George Cox made his debut as a sub against Stoke in March.
Centre-backs: Tom Dallison made 16 starts sandwiched between 4 appearances on loan at Braintree in August and then a loan at Crawley where he made a real impression on his professional debut against Plymouth. Unfortunately a fractured toe ended his League season as soon as it had begun.
Ben Barclay made 15 starts; Ben White 7 (in an injury-affected campaign); Glen Rea 5 (between loan spells at Southend and Luton); Connor Goldson 3 (where we first saw his potential both as a defender and as a goalscorer); and 2nd-year scholar Tom Cadman made his U-21 debut with starts in the first two games of the season.
Central Midfielders: Perhaps the biggest plus of the season was the emergence of 1st-year scholar Jayson Molumby. After only two appearances at U-18 level Molumby was promoted to the U-21s where he remained for the rest of the season, making 13 starts. He also made 9 appearances for the ROI U-17s (captaining the side 6 times) and scoring 3 goals.
Fellow Irishman Des Hutchinson also made 13 starts. Charlie Harris started 8 games after making a goalscoring debut when going on loan to Aldershot. He was sold to Barnsley in the January transfer window. Will Collar missed the first half of the season through injury before returning to make 6 starts. Emil Asmundsson, who suffered a serious injury at the very start of last season, was given a short-term contract but was released in November when he returned to Iceland, signing for Fylkir in February. Numerous first team squad members made a handful of starts.
Wide Midfielders: Joe Ward made 14 starts on the right in his first year as a full-time professional. His performances earned him a contract extension for another year. Jesse Starkey had 13 starts on the left (in addition to his appearances at left-back). Norwegian Henrik Bjordal made 8 starts after joining in January. Jeffrey Monakana, after yet another loan (this time at Bristol Rovers) made 7 starts but in January was released to head to Romania.
Connor Tighe made 3 starts before heading to Bognor on loan in February. He has scored 3 goals in their last 3 games as they now go into the play-offs.
Attacking Midfielders: James Tilley, having made a very brief first team appearance at the end of last season, continued his development by joining the first team squad at their pre-season training camp in the French Alps. He made 16 starts for the U-21s and was top scorer with 7 goals throughout the season. He was also 19th man for the first team in their FA Cup tie at Hull.
Jack Harper arrived with much fanfare and expectation from Real Madrid in the summer. After recovering from injury he made his U-21 debut against WBA late in October. In total he made 15 starts and scored 6 goals.
Forwards: Unfortunately, Albion’s forwards were about as effective as their first team counterparts last season. Daniel Akindayini, newly arrived from Tottenham, scored 2 goals in 13 starts. In February he joined Margate on loan and scored twice on his debut, but also suffered an ankle injury that severely curtailed his further involvement. Chike Kandi drew a blank in 4 starts (but did have a successful two-month loan spell at Bognor where he scored 7 goals in 12 appearances; he is back there on loan but has also been troubled by an ankle injury).
Jonah Ayunga signed from Dorchester in the winter window and scored his first goal in the final match at Newcastle, his sixth start. Vahid Hambo signed in July but missed most of the season with ankle and knee injuries. He made 2 starts at the end of the campaign.
Robin Deen had a solitary start but did spend two months on loan at Lewes and a month at Hastings United.
The Icelandic wunderkid Ragnar Mar Larusson had us wundering where the heck he was, as he made only one sub appearance all season. He did join his old club IA Akranes on loan in July, and popped up with a 14-minute hat-trick in a friendly against QPR in January.
And then there is Jordan Maguire-Drew. He made only two sub appearances for the U-21s, spending the bulk of the season with the U-18s where he scored 15 goals in 16 matches. He had a couple of spells out with injury but just three weeks ago joined Worthing where he has now scored 7 goals in 5 matches.
Looking forward
It has been widely reported that the emergency loan system will not be operational next season, meaning that the development squad is more likely to be called upon when the first team squad suffers injury, loss of form and suspension. That explains the addition over the last 12 months of the likes of Harper, Hambo, Bjordal and Ayunga as the club attempts to boost the quality in its development ranks.
As well as buying in new young talent, there are at least a handful of prospects coming up through the academy system who stand a chance of making the first team, including James Tilley, Jordan Maguire-Drew and the precocious Jayson Molumby.
It is also possible that there will be changes to the U-21 structure itself, as Premier League clubs are reportedly unhappy with the competitiveness of the existing league system. We will have to wait and see what organizational changes are made, and in the meantime we should soon learn from the club which players are being released as their contracts expire and which ones are being kept on as they continue their development.
League
Albion, for the second season running, competed in Division Two of the Barclays U-21 Premier League. They struggled to find wins (and goals) in the league all season. Their final day victory did at least enable them to belatedly climb off the bottom of the table, finishing 11th out of 12 teams. Some will proclaim that as Albion are still a new kid on the block, expectations should remain modest. To counter this, it must be noted that Derby (who became a Category One academy at the same time as Albion, and were also enjoying just their second campaign at this level) won the division, finishing ahead of a very strong Arsenal side, with Swansea City third (who themselves were competing at this level for the very first time).
Albion won only two league matches out of twenty-two (the first was against Stoke and featured a strong line-up including Maenpaa, Holla, Ince, March and JFC). They scored 17 league goals, the lowest in either division. There were some bright spots; a creditable 1-1 draw at then-leaders WBA in late October; a 0-0 draw against the same opponents in January when the Baggies would have gone top with a win; and a 2-2 draw at leaders Derby in February when only an injury-time equalizer spared the Rams’ blushes. But there were also a number of disappointing results, not least the 1-1 draw at Crawley in March against what was essentially a Newcastle U-18 side.
P: 22 W: 2 D: 8 L: 12 F: 17 A: 36 GD: -19 PTS: 14 Final Position: 11th of 12
Cups
In the Parafix Sussex Senior Cup, Albion went out at the first hurdle when they conceded two goals in the final fifteen minutes to lose 2-1 at Three Bridges.
Albion also competed in the U-21 Premier League Cup and, despite facing three opponents from Division One, enjoyed just about their best performances of the season. Norwich City were dispatched 4-1 at the Amex with some fine goals including an absolute peach from Jack Harper, his first for the club. A very late injury-time equalizer against Everton earned Albion extra-time and an eventual win on penalties after a 2-2 draw, which set up a quarter-final tie back on Merseyside against Liverpool five days later. Albion led 3-1 but were pegged back and the Reds went on to record a 4-3 victory after extra-time.
Review by position (figures relate to league and cup, 26 matches in total)
Goalkeeper: Christian Walton appeared in half the matches, making 13 appearances. He had originally joined Bury on a season-long loan in July, but a combination of a groin injury and loss of form saw him recalled in September. A further six weeks at Plymouth followed but from January he remained with Albion.
Niki Maenpaa and Harry Doherty both made 3 appearances (Doherty joined Hastings on loan for a month in February) and the head mental Josh Smith also made 3 appearances before joining Merstham on loan in November where he remained for the rest of the season (the website report from one of their opponents said he had "..played the fool, looked a clown and ended Saturday’s clash as his side’s hero..").
2nd-year scholar Bailey Vose made his full debut at this level against Fulham in December. He had just returned from a very successful two months on loan in the first team at Whyteleafe where his arrival coincided with a marked upturn in results.
Young pro Robert Sanchez also made his debut at this level when he played against Newcastle at Crawley in March.
Full-backs: Rob Hunt was ever-present at right-back (nobody else made even 20 appearances). Hunt was also the regular captain of the side. He just missed out on the first-team trip to the French Alps in July but was 19th man for the Capital One Cup ties against Southend and Walsall and was named as a substitute against Hull in the FA Cup.
1st-year pro Dylan Barnett made 18 starts at left-back. Jesse Starkey played the position 5 times and Adam Chicksen played the first 2 matches of the season (getting himself sent-off for two bookings in five minutes against Swansea and not being seen at this level again). 2nd-year scholar George Cox made his debut as a sub against Stoke in March.
Centre-backs: Tom Dallison made 16 starts sandwiched between 4 appearances on loan at Braintree in August and then a loan at Crawley where he made a real impression on his professional debut against Plymouth. Unfortunately a fractured toe ended his League season as soon as it had begun.
Ben Barclay made 15 starts; Ben White 7 (in an injury-affected campaign); Glen Rea 5 (between loan spells at Southend and Luton); Connor Goldson 3 (where we first saw his potential both as a defender and as a goalscorer); and 2nd-year scholar Tom Cadman made his U-21 debut with starts in the first two games of the season.
Central Midfielders: Perhaps the biggest plus of the season was the emergence of 1st-year scholar Jayson Molumby. After only two appearances at U-18 level Molumby was promoted to the U-21s where he remained for the rest of the season, making 13 starts. He also made 9 appearances for the ROI U-17s (captaining the side 6 times) and scoring 3 goals.
Fellow Irishman Des Hutchinson also made 13 starts. Charlie Harris started 8 games after making a goalscoring debut when going on loan to Aldershot. He was sold to Barnsley in the January transfer window. Will Collar missed the first half of the season through injury before returning to make 6 starts. Emil Asmundsson, who suffered a serious injury at the very start of last season, was given a short-term contract but was released in November when he returned to Iceland, signing for Fylkir in February. Numerous first team squad members made a handful of starts.
Wide Midfielders: Joe Ward made 14 starts on the right in his first year as a full-time professional. His performances earned him a contract extension for another year. Jesse Starkey had 13 starts on the left (in addition to his appearances at left-back). Norwegian Henrik Bjordal made 8 starts after joining in January. Jeffrey Monakana, after yet another loan (this time at Bristol Rovers) made 7 starts but in January was released to head to Romania.
Connor Tighe made 3 starts before heading to Bognor on loan in February. He has scored 3 goals in their last 3 games as they now go into the play-offs.
Attacking Midfielders: James Tilley, having made a very brief first team appearance at the end of last season, continued his development by joining the first team squad at their pre-season training camp in the French Alps. He made 16 starts for the U-21s and was top scorer with 7 goals throughout the season. He was also 19th man for the first team in their FA Cup tie at Hull.
Jack Harper arrived with much fanfare and expectation from Real Madrid in the summer. After recovering from injury he made his U-21 debut against WBA late in October. In total he made 15 starts and scored 6 goals.
Forwards: Unfortunately, Albion’s forwards were about as effective as their first team counterparts last season. Daniel Akindayini, newly arrived from Tottenham, scored 2 goals in 13 starts. In February he joined Margate on loan and scored twice on his debut, but also suffered an ankle injury that severely curtailed his further involvement. Chike Kandi drew a blank in 4 starts (but did have a successful two-month loan spell at Bognor where he scored 7 goals in 12 appearances; he is back there on loan but has also been troubled by an ankle injury).
Jonah Ayunga signed from Dorchester in the winter window and scored his first goal in the final match at Newcastle, his sixth start. Vahid Hambo signed in July but missed most of the season with ankle and knee injuries. He made 2 starts at the end of the campaign.
Robin Deen had a solitary start but did spend two months on loan at Lewes and a month at Hastings United.
The Icelandic wunderkid Ragnar Mar Larusson had us wundering where the heck he was, as he made only one sub appearance all season. He did join his old club IA Akranes on loan in July, and popped up with a 14-minute hat-trick in a friendly against QPR in January.
And then there is Jordan Maguire-Drew. He made only two sub appearances for the U-21s, spending the bulk of the season with the U-18s where he scored 15 goals in 16 matches. He had a couple of spells out with injury but just three weeks ago joined Worthing where he has now scored 7 goals in 5 matches.
Looking forward
It has been widely reported that the emergency loan system will not be operational next season, meaning that the development squad is more likely to be called upon when the first team squad suffers injury, loss of form and suspension. That explains the addition over the last 12 months of the likes of Harper, Hambo, Bjordal and Ayunga as the club attempts to boost the quality in its development ranks.
As well as buying in new young talent, there are at least a handful of prospects coming up through the academy system who stand a chance of making the first team, including James Tilley, Jordan Maguire-Drew and the precocious Jayson Molumby.
It is also possible that there will be changes to the U-21 structure itself, as Premier League clubs are reportedly unhappy with the competitiveness of the existing league system. We will have to wait and see what organizational changes are made, and in the meantime we should soon learn from the club which players are being released as their contracts expire and which ones are being kept on as they continue their development.
