Omar Dampha - 16-year-old Swede having a trial here

[Exile]

Dallison was released by Arsenal so they have done the groundwork similar with Hall at Motherwell Walton at Plymouth, and to a lesser extent Hornby-Forbes at Fleetwood and Aderkugbe at Vancouver Whitecaps.

Not THAT similar:
Hall wasn't released by Motherwell.
Walton wasn't released by Plymouth.
Hornby-Forbes wasn't released by Fleetwood.
Adekugbe is still a Vancouver player.

I am sure there are some released by the Manchester and top London clubs who we miss out on like Henri Lansbury started going out on loan to clubs from Arsenal when he was 17 and signed for Forest when he was 22. This is the type of player.

Lansbury wasn't released by Arsenal. Forest paid over £1m for him.

Apart from that, great post.

 

[DavidinSouthampton]

While not wishing to belittle either him or the club recruitment team it appears that we spend a lot of time giving young players a trial for the future should we not be looking at bringing in more 19/20 year olds who could make the grade in 1 -2 years rather than 16 yr olds who will probably be 5 years away.

That's not how an Academy or a decent youth set-up works. Some of the greatest talent has been on big clubs' books from about the age of 8. Theo Walcott was studying at my wife's college in the sixth form while on the books at - and very much in contention at - Southampton. Gareth Bale followed the same route, too.

 

[DavidinSouthampton]

Dallison was released by Arsenal so they have done the groundwork similar with Hall at Motherwell Walton at Plymouth, and to a lesser extent Hornby-Forbes at Fleetwood and Aderkugbe at Vancouver Whitecaps. I am sure there are some released by the Manchester and top London clubs who we miss out on like Henri Lansbury started going out on loan to clubs from Arsenal when he was 17 and signed for Forest when he was 22. This is the type of player. I can see the logic of 16 year olds but would like to see better 19/20 year olds brought in

We should be aiming at picking up the real talent before it gets hoovered up by the big clubs, and then developing and honing the talent in our TOP-LEVEL RATED academy.

 

[DavidinSouthampton]

That may be true but I'm not sure that the standard of football is relevant - it's how good the kid is, not how good the team is.

Burton Albion were several leagues below us when we signed Peter Ward - should we have given him a miss? Gary Hart wasn't playing at that much higher level, should we have passed him by?

There have been some good players from lowly leagues. Stuart Pearce was several leagues below Coventry when he signed for them and who knows what equivalent level Roy Keane was when Forest signed him.

Jamie Vardy was "plucked" from lower league football, and Charlie Austin was rescued from Poole Town, if my memory serves me right. And he is doing OK at the moment at Southampton.

 

[BensGrandad]

Not THAT similar:
Hall wasn't released by Motherwell.
Walton wasn't released by Plymouth.
Hornby-Forbes wasn't released by Fleetwood.
Adekugbe is still a Vancouver player.



Lansbury wasn't released by Arsenal. Forest paid over £1m for him.

Apart from that, great post.

I didnt say they were released but they weren't very expensive signings and there are many that are released and that is the players we should be targeting. The need is immediately for players in the next 2 years before the Academy can start producing players.. We have gone the right way with Ritchie Towell but more must follow.

 

[Puppet Master]

16 year old Swede....mmm.....

 

[Exile]

I didnt say they were released but they weren't very expensive signings and there are many that are released and that is the players we should be targeting. The need is immediately for players in the next 2 years before the Academy can start producing players.. We have gone the right way with Ritchie Towell but more must follow.

Towell was signed at the age of 24!

 

[Stat Brother]

Towell was signed at the age of 24!

and is currently (I assume always will be) older than Dunk & Knockaert.

 

[Triggaaar]

should we not be looking at bringing in more 19/20 year olds who could make the grade in 1 -2 years rather than 16 yr olds who will probably be 5 years away.

Presumably we should be doing both. Decent 19 and 20 year old's should also have shown more of their potential by now, so we're less likely to discover a talent at that age. I'm sure you can think of plenty of great players who were already good by the age of 19/20.

 

[CHAPPERS]

I didnt say they were released but they weren't very expensive signings and there are many that are released and that is the players we should be targeting. The need is immediately for players in the next 2 years before the Academy can start producing players.. We have gone the right way with Ritchie Towell but more must follow.

Edit: **** it, can't be arsed arguing with BG....

 

[BensGrandad]

Edit: **** it, can't be arsed arguing with BG....

If you cant put up a persuasive argument dont bother.just leave it.

 

[RM-Taylor]

We already have a song that we can borrow from Grimsby for him.

https://youtu.be/l4faHsyRCzo

 

[BigGully]

We should be aiming at picking up the real talent before it gets hoovered up by the big clubs, and then developing and honing the talent in our TOP-LEVEL RATED academy.

We should be aiming to develop good talent that is realistic for us to recruit in the first instance and try and make them into 'real' talent, development and nurture is the magic bullet, we are not in the market for 'wonder kids', they if deemed so will be snapped up by the bigger clubs, if we find one on our doorstep all well and good, he might even have good reason to stay with us ahead of his 'foreign' colleagues.

Just schizophrenically popping a lad from Iceland, one from Norway and another batch from Ireland into the academy to try and look internationally competitive is just vanity, our academy is a top rate facility with top rated staffing levels and a top rated financial comittment, just like all of the Cat 1 academys, but it doesnt follow that we are guaranteed at being particualrly good at development and recruitment, even though they have the means to be so.

 

[Gullflyinghigh]

and is currently (I assume always will be) older than Dunk & Knockaert.

Assumptions are dangerous, I'm pretty sure there have been numerous players over the years that've managed to crack time travel.

Obafemi Martins and Kanu are probably only now coming up to their 30's, for example.

 

[AZ Gull]

Assumptions are dangerous, I'm pretty sure there have been numerous players over the years that've managed to crack time travel.

Obafemi Martins and Kanu are probably only now coming up to their 30's, for example.

Hail to the king of footballing time travel:-

[TWEET]503847815361998848[/TWEET]

 

[Gullflyinghigh]

Hail to the king of footballing time travel:-

[TWEET]503847815361998848[/TWEET]

I would, but Tapatalk doesn't want me viewing it.

It's a cruel and unreasonable app at times...

 

[One tough cookie]

There he is again Big Gully, the disgruntled parent or ex staff member knocking the clubs youth department again, the club that I believe that has around 19 youth and full Internationals within the set up now.
Do you ever have anything positive to say about the club and its upper coming youth system, did you mis out as a youngster who wanted to play football for BHAFC?

 

[One tough cookie]

May be you should come out of retirement and contact the club for a job in the recruitment and scouting team, you talk a good game of football.