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Southend United U23s and U18s news

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MattE said:
With U21's at an advantage as not counting towards the first team squad limit - I'm not sure I see much point of the U23's. The U21's might get first team opportunities ahead of the U23's. Anyone give any positives for the U23's?
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We don't have separate U23s and U21s squads; it's the same thing. All of yesterday's squad, with the exception of Harry Phillips, were U21s, but in any case in the (very small number of) competitive fixtures, a limited number of over-age players are permitted to play.
 
Exiled Shrimper said:
We don't have separate U23s and U21s squads; it's the same thing. All of yesterday's squad, with the exception of Harry Phillips, were U21s, but in any case in the (very small number of) competitive fixtures, a limited number of over-age players are permitted to play.
Click to expand...

Whither Harry Seadon?
 
Exiled Shrimper said:
We don't have separate U23s and U21s squads; it's the same thing. All of yesterday's squad, with the exception of Harry Phillips, were U21s, but in any case in the (very small number of) competitive fixtures, a limited number of over-age players are permitted to play.
Click to expand...

I guess expand out to having players that are aged between 21 and 23 that aren't in your first team squad then. We have quite a few of those don't we?
 
MattE said:
I guess expand out to having players that are aged between 21 and 23 that aren't in your first team squad then. We have quite a few of those don't we?
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Phillips is the only one, really, currently; maybe Tom Clifford, too. Kyprianou would've fallen into that bracket, but as he's 24 next month, I'm not sure he'd count in the U23s bracket. Elvis is in there, but he's a first-teamer now.

The general point is correct, though. The U23s set-up is there to catch players who might develop at a different pace; the best example in the current squad is Clifford. Whereas the likes of Charlie Kelman and Dru Yearwood were able to step into the senior squad whilst young enough to represent the youth team, Tom didn't get that opportunity.

We won't how Tom would've performed had he been given a chance at 18, but having an U23s squad has enabled him to continue his development post-scholarship, go out on loan to Bishop's Stortford and Concord Rangers to gain experience in senior football, and he's now been introduced primarily as a 21-year-old to the first-team and has out-performed two more experienced left-backs in Ralph and Hart this season. Without the U23s, he would probably have been released, joined another club's U23s or gone into non-league football.
 
Exiled Shrimper said:
Phillips is the only one, really, currently; maybe Tom Clifford, too. Kyprianou would've fallen into that bracket, but as he's 24 next month, I'm not sure he'd count in the U23s bracket. Elvis is in there, but he's a first-teamer now.

The general point is correct, though. The U23s set-up is there to catch players who might develop at a different pace; the best example in the current squad is Clifford. Whereas the likes of Charlie Kelman and Dru Yearwood were able to step into the senior squad whilst young enough to represent the youth team, Tom didn't get that opportunity.

We won't how Tom would've performed had he been given a chance at 18, but having an U23s squad has enabled him to continue his development post-scholarship, go out on loan to Bishop's Stortford and Concord Rangers to gain experience in senior football, and he's now been introduced primarily as a 21-year-old to the first-team and has out-performed two more experienced left-backs in Ralph and Hart this season. Without the U23s, he would probably have been released, joined another club's U23s or gone into non-league football.
Click to expand...

I think Clifford qualifies as an under 21, so doesn't take up a first team squad place, so not sure that is a good example. I can see the benefit of having players under the age of 21 (as at the cut off date) who maybe aren't good enough for a regular spot in the first team. If needed in an emergency you can play them and not take up a first team squad spot. It's the players that are over 21 and not in the first team squad that I struggle to see the benefit of - you can't use them as cover as you'd need space to name them in your first team squad.

Seems a bit odd to have U23's football, and then the first team squad cut-off at 21 - doesn't seem like the rules, and the practicalities are joined up.
 
MattE said:
I think Clifford qualifies as an under 21, so doesn't take up a first team squad place, so not sure that is a good example. I can see the benefit of having players under the age of 21 (as at the cut off date) who maybe aren't good enough for a regular spot in the first team. If needed in an emergency you can play them and not take up a first team squad spot. It's the players that are over 21 and not in the first team squad that I struggle to see the benefit of - you can't use them as cover as you'd need space to name them in your first team squad.

Seems a bit odd to have U23's football, and then the first team squad cut-off at 21 - doesn't seem like the rules, and the practicalities are joined up.
Click to expand...

I understand what you're saying, but I don't consider that it's really an issue. I'd agree with you in that I don't think there's an obvious additional benefit to operating as U23s rather than U21s.

It's just a name and, as already established, the majority of players in the squad are U21s anyway. Some other clubs refer to the teams as U21s, so it might be that there's a rebranding moving forwards anyway, but I believe the clubs at Category One and Category Two (playing in Premier League 2 or the Professional Development League) are branded as U23s and this just falls in line with that.
 
U18's line up thus....https://twitter.com/SUFCYouth/status/1370683381801906181?s=20

1615633653670.png
 
U23's 1615640439431.png

#BluesU23s vs Dorking Wanderers: Andeng Ndi, Chandler, Mitchell-Nelson, Wallace, Osmieh, Phillips, Stewart, Benton, Eastwood, Rush, Kinali. Subs: Balogun, K Coker, Brown, Mpenga, Martin, O Coker
 
Last edited:
I believe that the U23's played a friendly against Cambridge Utd yesterday, anyone know the score and scorers?.
 
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