Saints Academy Thread

Annoying we didn't get a trophy for coming 2nd in the Championship...we got one for coming 2nd in League 1. We need all we can get....we can always shuffle them up to accommodate the Champions League monstrosity.

 

http://www.insidefutbol.com/2016/05...upremo-happy-to-follow-saints-example/288425/

Rangers have been looking at the Saints academy and have pointed out how we are all about player development without caring about results. The U18s only won one game and Saints don't care.

 

Something I've harped on about for years. Several people on here get upset when they lose. It is all about development and hopefully development in different positions too.

We also move players up age groups as soon as we think they'll cope. That's great too.

 

I get disappointed when they lose (that goes for any Saints XI), but not distraught, a winning mentality is important, but losing is not the end of the world at this stage of their careers.

 

While I agree to a certain extent. Good academy results are usually a good indication of the depth of quality in the squad.
It's not to say that individuals will not succeed, but it's unlikely that we're sitting on a golden generation

 

I actually believe that our desire as a nation to create a winning mentality is the fundamental problem with football at grass roots level (which follows through to the pro game). We develop kids to win, not to develop skills and patterns of play.

 

Or they could be the result of us playing 15 year olds against 18 year olds. Just as an example.

Results may be an indicator of that depth or they may be an indication that the opponents were bigger and stronger at that stage of their development.

 

It's interesting the golden generation aspect - realistically you only need to produce one or two players a year to move into the first team squad. Given a contract of say 4 years, this means 8 academy players in a first team squad - highly unlikely to all be in the first team at the upper end of the Premier League. Whilst it is a nice idea, very few teams will ever have any more at the higher levels of the game.

 

And I've read and certainly agreed with.

 

Race is also important at that age, the bigger clubs buy16 year olds from Africa or with African blood as they are simply stronger,bigger and faster than most white kids of that age. Our stereotypical 5 foot 6 ginger ninja that we like at the academy will struggle against older and stronger teams, so the kids learn to be better footballers whereas the bigger lads that blew away their fellow 16 year olds may well stagnate as it all came too easy for them.

 

So what about Jake Hesketh? I have big hopes for him, but I doubt he'll get much first team opportunities next season, and he can't play youth football forever. Maybe a loan move for him?

 

watching the end of season interviews by the u18 and u21 managers, they both seem very upbeat about some of the youngins in their charge

 

I think it is the insane belief that kids need to be taught everything and it has to be done in uber facilities that is the failing in the UK. Instead of putting money into getting more people into playing sports this country focuses on pushing that money into top notch facilities that they can boast about to everybody yet then prices many youngsters out of being able to play.

Instead of building top notch swimming pools, 25G astro turf complexes and such like they should be putting most of that money into simple stuff. Pay the money into grass cutting, line marking and CCTV to keep the pitches from being vandalised.

If they had spent the money maintaining the free pitches and giving free access to swimming pools there would be many many more kids swimming and playing football and developing skills instead of not being able to go to football because some parents can't afford (or are unwilling to pay) for their kids to go on courses.

All sports are going this way, not just swimming and football.

 

I take my son to the park every day to play but for the last ten days we've been wading through ridiculously long grass. So I do agree on that one!

 

They do mow the grass on our one. The stupid basketball court with integral little goals is all that is there for football though. The old goalposts are very inspirational. Once they went the kids stopped playing football there.

I've said for a long time. While we hear about all this funding into astro turf this and indoor that the playing fields now have no goalposts nor lines nor are every used.

It is all a money racket and that investment is purely into things that will generate money. If they had not built half the things they all love to boast about (not just the FA, all sports) then they could have at least given free easily accessible access to what was already there.

Instead they put all the money into things they can promote and look good for doing.

I know it is a silly comparison but in the late eighties pool (8 ball pool) was quite small in Lincoln by 2000 it was a 1200 strong 3 night league. How did that happen? Not from getting the most expensive tables and charging more to use them that's for sure. They opened up the tables on pool league nights. Anybody could play for free. There would be a match table which only the Premier League players were allowed to play on and a match set was kept only for Premier League matches. That attracted kids in and all sorts and eventually the tables were free all week long. Students came in, youngsters came in. They wanted to play against the better players and the standard improved very very quickly.

For some reason that stopped around the mid noughties and the tables were only free for the league games themselves. The league is now dimishing and whilst the quality at the top end is still as good if not better it is ageing and there aren't that many good youngsters coming through.

The FA should be putting money into basic pitches with free access. CCTV if needed to protect them. So what if it is Council land. The FA should be investing in free access including free coaches and funding teams from all levels to keep costs down.

A lot of parents cannot or will not prioritise 2 or 3 kids a week even at £3 + transport costs.

But at least we have these nice astro turf pitches eh.......

 

Jumpers for goal posts. Whatever happened to that!? It's not all about goal posts and white lines.

Just saying.

 

I agree but you can put jumpers anywhere. Did you not ever feel the urge once you saw the "proper goal posts" on the parks? Hey lads want to go for a game of headers and volleys on the park later? They don't go on the park to play football anymore.

 

It's bad they're gone, but it's not just down to the authorities. Parenting and changing culture has impacted that too, sadly.

 

The National Tennis Centre in Roehampton is another example - hardly used since it opened, cost £40m then closed after 7 years. Meanwhile, a very promising youngster down here in west Wales was left to fend for himself with so little backing or support and is now ranked in the 500's rather than the 200's as everyone thinks he should be. Shame the LTA didn't spend that £40m on building smaller, regional centres - they may have noticed a future Andy Murray...

 

or just basic free use of courts that need a bit of maintenance and protection from vandals. Nooo they had to charge for the municipal ones here and all you saw was grey haired folks enjoying a gentle knock about.

Maybe even a few free training fun sessions to find some promising young kids to then give some free proper training to.