The Academy.

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

How long before the academy starts producing championship quality players?

Doesn't really matter overmuch. Any players the academy produces will be flogged on ASAP to the first bidder to come in with a poundshop offer. And who could blame the individual young player for doing that when we can't even retain our most prized senior players for exactly the same reason. Only benefit we'll get is the sell-on fee.

 

[nwgull]

Doesn't really matter overmuch. Any players the academy produces will be flogged on ASAP to the first bidder to come in with a poundshop offer. And who could blame the individual young player for doing that when we can't even retain our most prized senior players for exactly the same reason. Only benefit we'll get is the sell-on fee.

Who was the last player that we sold to the first bid?

 

[timbha]

I wonder if they are teaching the kids how to take a long throw for the desperation stages of every match even if you have no big strikers.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Who was the last player that we sold to the first bid?

Just about any of our recent former players currently doggy-paddling in the depths of the Premier League.

 

[supaseagull]

And then he will get moaned at and abused for not developing quick enough or having erratic form just like JFC.

i've said all season that JFC should never have been used as he was this year. He is too young and lacks the players around him to develop. Instead, he would have been better off loaned out to MK Dons or Bristol City. Instead we have a lad who gets moaned at everytime he plays and that does nothing for confidence.

I fear that the next best step for him is to move to another Championship club where the fans aren't going to be unrealistic with their expectations in a decent prospect.

Next year, it will be the same for Solly March if he stays fit and stays here.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

i've said all season that JFC should never have been used as he was this year. He is too young and lacks the players around him to develop. Instead, he would have been better off loaned out to MK Dons or Bristol City. Instead we have a lad who gets moaned at everytime he plays and that does nothing for confidence.

I fear that the next best step for him is to move to another Championship club where the fans aren't going to be unrealistic with their expectations in a decent prospect.

Next year, it will be the same for Solly March if he stays fit and stays here.

Sorry but JFC and Solly March are both far too FLIMSY for this division and always will be. Ditto Shamir Fenelon. You don't win nothing with these kids at this level.

 

[nwgull]

Just about any of our recent former players currently doggy-paddling in the depths of the Premier League.

All the players that we had under contract and sold to Premier League clubs had several bids rejected for them before a much higher fee was accepted - I think Leicester ended up
paying double their original bid for Ulloa.

In the case of Bridcutt, we even refused his transfer request and the player had to go on strike to force the issue.

Have a bit of positivity. We may have been crap in recruiting for the last 2 years, but the club certainly don't sell players easily.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Have a bit of positivity. We may have been crap in recruiting for the last 2 years, but the club certainly don't sell players easily.

Disagree strongly. We sell players FAR too easily and replace them with cheapo sub-standard replacements. How on EARTH could you or indeed anyone other than the club's official ringpiece, sorry mouthpiece [MENTION=24867]chaileyjem[/MENTION] argue otherwise?

 

[chaileyjem]

Disagree strongly. We sell players FAR too easily and replace them with cheapo sub-standard replacements. How on EARTH could you or indeed anyone other than the club's official ringpiece, sorry mouthpiece [MENTION=24867]chaileyjem[/MENTION] argue otherwise?

Charming !!

PS: Sub standard they might well be. Cheapo they certainly aint.

 

[nwgull]

Disagree strongly. We sell players FAR too easily and replace them with cheapo sub-standard replacements. How on EARTH could you or indeed anyone other than the club's official ringpiece, sorry mouthpiece [MENTION=24867]chaileyjem[/MENTION] argue otherwise?

The facts on players sold say otherwise.

However, don't let that get in the way if you're determined to be negative. I'm sure you won't mind me being positive either; it's an outlook that has served me incredibly well over the last 6-7 years.

 

[Ernest]

Marcos Painter in the first season. None since.

We had Joe Mattock on loan most of that season

 

[Stat Brother]

Marcos Painter in the first season. None since.

The second mention of Painter in the last 2 threads I've read, which means only one thing:-

I'm currently grinning like a loon remembering the Bridgesque ball played down to the South Stand.
Unfortunately it wasn't Bridge in hot pursuit but Paints.
Closely followed by a lacklustre Wolves (?) player.
The through ball was perfectly weighted, finally rolling out after a good 15 minutes of hard 'sprinting' by Marcos.
It was as if time had stopped still.
Easily the slowest piece of athleticism I have ever seen.


Happy days.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

The facts on players sold say otherwise.

However, don't let that get in the way if you're determined to be negative. I'm sure you won't mind me being positive either; it's an outlook that has served me incredibly well over the last 6-7 years.

Apologies if I don't share your uber-positive happy-clappy Albion view. My fault I'm sure. I would say in my defence though that this time last season, more or less, we had Ulloa and Barnes up front. Now we've got COG and Best and the usual last twenty minutes throw-on rags i.e. CMS and Lua-Lua. Keep enjoying!

 

[Phat Baz 68]

at least 5-8 years before we see results

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

at least 5-8 years before we see results

By which point, under current recruitment strategy, we'll have the best-looking Elite Football Performance Centre in the [Insert Tinpot
Company You Never heard Of Here] Conference South cos we'll once again have flogged off the family silverware for short-term gains.

 

[nwgull]

Apologies if I don't share your uber-positive happy-clappy Albion view. My fault I'm sure. I would say in my defence though that this time last season, more or less, we had Ulloa and Barnes up front. Now we've got COG and Best and the usual last twenty minutes throw-on rags i.e. CMS and Lua-Lua. Keep enjoying!

It's a positive outlook on life in general. It works.

 

[JCL666]

No thats no longer the case clubs can sign whoever from wherever, as has been mentioned there are satellite centres that could fulfil the training commitments, but I am guessing we could sign anyone and give them clearance to play for their local team and ship them in during holidays, its the old formula that served clubs generations ago !!

In an earlier thread we discussed the cat 1 and new training facility and although undoubtedly great and trumps the likes Millwalls, Brentfords etc the old pecking order still remains, we are always likely to lose out to genuinely bigger clubs, it does offer a stronger bargaining tool and seems to cement our position in trying to recruit youngsters perhaps deemed not quite good enough for Premiership clubs.

Page 8 of this has the time things on http://www.football-league.co.uk/do...ers-and-parents-2014-15-e-book549-1839866.pdf

 

[BigGully]

at least 5-8 years before we see results

Baz, what's your logic, why 5-8 years ?

What is holding us back for say the next 3 years and why the optimism in say 6 years, I dont get it !!

 

[Rookie]

Unfortunately, I have no idea how he has been playing (although I believe he was out injured for a while earlier this season).

There is an U-16 lad called David Ajiboye who has been a sub for the last few U-18 games. He has spent a couple of years in the Spurs academy but seems to have made the switch to Albion, and will presumably commence his scholarship in July. I think his position is right wing. I have no idea if he is "a bit special" though.

I'm looking forward to seeing how James Tilley develops over the next couple of years. He was awarded his scholarship in May 2013, a year in advance. And he tweeted towards the end of last month that he had signed his first professional contract with the club (after only one scholarship year), so he is clearly highly thought of at the club. He has scored 8 goals for the U-18s this season, and has played in the last 5 development squad games (which is 4 more than Mar Larusson has played in, and Tilley is a year younger).

I think Garcia may have scored a hat trick in one game (going by his Twitter), but not sure what position he actually plays.

 

[BigGully]

Unfortunately, I have no idea how he has been playing (although I believe he was out injured for a while earlier this season).

There is an U-16 lad called David Ajiboye who has been a sub for the last few U-18 games. He has spent a couple of years in the Spurs academy but seems to have made the switch to Albion, and will presumably commence his scholarship in July. I think his position is right wing. I have no idea if he is "a bit special" though.

I'm looking forward to seeing how James Tilley develops over the next couple of years. He was awarded his scholarship in May 2013, a year in advance. And he tweeted towards the end of last month that he had signed his first professional contract with the club (after only one scholarship year), so he is clearly highly thought of at the club. He has scored 8 goals for the U-18s this season, and has played in the last 5 development squad games (which is 4 more than Mar Larusson has played in, and Tilley is a year younger).

I get regular updates of whats happening within the academy through a good friend that has a son involved at the higher end of it.

The greatest hurdle for any of the youngsters is that in the past three years the club has had 4 first team managers and three Under 21's managers/coaches, the pecking order and the views on each individual player can change each time a new guy is appointed.

The club might say that they have a head of academy that overlooks the system, but it is likely that each new coach will reassess each players ability and role, leaving an uncertain environment for any youngster, there will be winners and losers but it doesnt lend itself to a sophisticated decision process.