Youth teamers

[Yorkshire Blue]

In two words David Webb

Webby's third spell was with one goal in mind , to massively reduce our overheads. This was done, at a stroke, by cutting the youth policy. He felt that he could buy in the same number of players who would come through from the youth set up for a fraction of the cost.
We even went through a spell were Tony was running the Junior blues in the local leagues as a seperate outfit.

The youth set up , as it currently stands, started from scratch and Duncan got in a number of the older age group from Cambridge etc as we just didn't have any.

In the past a lot of local youngsters were picked up by clubs away from Southend because our set up was so poor (Barrett , Lockwood, Dean Gurkin are a few we know, Kirk Hudson was only various clubs books before he was 18 and we only had a look at him when Celtic released him and Bournemouth didn't extend his contract)
The Current youth set up is now producing players of a better standard, we have a couple released in the past 2 years from the youth who are in the conference and if we keep that level of progress up a few more years should see the talent start coming though.
The major plus point is that we are now attracting youth from outside the area (Peggy, Frank and the Scandinavian lad) when other , reputably bigger , teams are interested in them.

I don't recall many decent youth products in my entire 40 years following the Blues. Prior, Edwards, Taylor , Nelson and Edinburgh are the only ones who spring to mind (along with the likes of Gymer, Seaden, Engwell, Fitzpatrick, Perkins x 2, Lawson...)

And it was that cost-cutting that paved the way for Tilson's consecutive promotions.

I'd add Roget to the decent list. The likes of Paul Smith and Matt Lockwood turned out to be very good players, just not for us!

 

[Firestorm]

According to Soccerbase Lockwood was a trainee at QPR , I didn't think he was ever on our books , just in our catchment area. Kightly was signed at age 16, I believe, after Spurs released him

 

[Firestorm]

And it was that cost-cutting that paved the way for Tilson's consecutive promotions.

I'd add Roget to the decent list. The likes of Paul Smith and Matt Lockwood turned out to be very good players, just not for us!

Yep Roget was another Youth product who was good for us,

Oh and Paul Clark !!

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

To the list of youth team graduates playing league football you can add Max Porter at Barnet

Cheers ShrimperOT, didn't know that.

According to soccerbase he's 20 years old played 13(2) games for Barnet this year having signed from Bishops Stortford in the summer.

That's good news to hear that our rejects are still good enough to make it to the football league. It wasn't so long ago that we were a feeder club for the Rymans first or second division.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

Yep Roget was another Youth product who was good for us,

Oh and Paul Clark !!

Er, yes :o the only way Paul Clark wouldn't come under good youth team products would be if you had another category for great youth team products. Over 300 league appearances and a spell managing the club and that tackle on Steve Bull!

 

[Reg Martin]

Didn't matt harold come through our set up? - then released and found his way to yeovil via several clubs before we bought him back.

 

[Firestorm]

Harrold is on Soccerbase as starting at Harlow , then Brentford

 

[Gremlin]

Harrold is on Soccerbase as starting at Harlow , then Brentford

Soccerbase doesn't deal with youth teams though. So if a player only made youth appearances for a particular club they probably wouldn't get a mention there.

 

[Jonny_Stokes]

Er, yes :o the only way Paul Clark wouldn't come under good youth team products would be if you had another category for great youth team products. Over 300 league appearances and a spell managing the club and that tackle on Steve Bull!

I see your Paul Clarke and raise you...well, lots of better players! ;)

Pee-taking aside, the signing of that Swedish chappie and others does go to show that things are obviously improving. New ground, first crop of decent youngsters in a mellenium...dare I suggest that things are looking up for Southend as long as the expectations in the short term aren't unrealisitc...?

 

[Interpol Shrimper]

things are looking up for Southend as long as the expectations in the short term aren't unrealisitc...?

And that statement unfortunately is currently the main barrier to SUFC ever moving up a class in terms of club!

See various rants of mine over the past few weeks! :(

 

[BILLERICAY BLUE]

There was an interesting article in the Telegraph last week, on the Arsenal Youth set-up. They were saying that as the Academy system was set up 8 or 9 years ago, they are only just starting to bear the fruits of that. They have a couple of great (English) 17/18 year olds who are just coming through. Bearing that in mind, it's going to be a while before we have a conveyor belt of talent coming through, but Moussa, Peggy and Herd are a pretty good start.

Telegraph Article

 

[Shrimpergonzo]

There was an interesting article in the Telegraph last week, on the Arsenal Youth set-up......... Bearing that in mind, it's going to be a while before we have a conveyor belt of talent coming through, but Moussa, Peggy and Herd are a pretty good start.

Telegraph Article

Actually Peggy Lokando was part of the Arsenal academy too, not one who has come up through our ranks.

http://www.arsenal.com/article.asp?thisNav=&article=369321

http://www.arsenal.com/player.asp?plid=65602&clid=4436

 

[BluePartridge]

Let's not forget what Man Utd did with their kids as well.

Yes that's right if we stay the course then Southend treble winners in the next decade or so for sure.

 

[Mr. Benedict]

Let's not forget what Man Utd did with their kids as well.

Yes that's right if we stay the course then Southend treble winners in the next decade or so for sure.

What, League One, LDV Vans and Essex Senior Cup?!?

Happy days! ;)

 

[fatshrimp]

Just saw on OS the article about Rhys Henry. 13 goals in 10 games. Not a bad return that.

Often on here, people bang on about 'one for the future'. Here is a genuine example of that in my view.

He says that, as a team, they have developed as a lot during the cup run.

Let's hope the prospects we have and the good work the club are doing pays off in the coming seasons.

 

[DTS]

According to Soccerbase Lockwood was a trainee at QPR , I didn't think he was ever on our books , just in our catchment area. Kightly was signed at age 16, I believe, after Spurs released him

Lockwood was a junior with us at the same time Steve Parmenter (Now our kit man) was. My Dad knew Parmenters Dad I think.

Agreed on Kightly - We got him from Spurs at 16.

 

[Interpol Shrimper]

Agreed on Kightly - We got him from Spurs at 16.

Via Basildon United though wasn't it?

 

[Csboy]

I really hope we see some of our youth team players coming through in the next few years. Southend's record of producing home grown players over the years is nothing short of disgraceful. A club like Crewe (who are a smaller club than Southend) over achieved for so long on the back of their home grown players.
For a club like Southend to become successful they do need a strong youth policy which gathering from their run in the FA Youth Cup this season seems to be happening now.

 

[Exiled Shrimper]

Lockwood was a junior with us at the same time Steve Parmenter (Now our kit man) was. My Dad knew Parmenters Dad I think.

Agreed on Kightly - We got him from Spurs at 16.

Both Lockwood and Parmenter were in the side the last time that the club reached the Fourth Round of the F.A. Youth Cup in 1994/5, losing in a replay to Tottenham Hostpur (featuring Kevin Maher) at Roots Hall.

Kightly arrived from Tottenham very much via a spell at Essex Senior League Basildon United.

I know I keep banging on about this, but there really is no harm in snapping up players from Academy sides at 14, 15, 16 - whilst we are a Centre of Excellence, especially one that was neglected for so long, we are going to be reliant on bringing in that sort of talent, hence Peggy Lokando, Davis Abbey, Jack Morris all arriving from Arsenal and current youth-team skipper Tom Hopkins from Millwall. Rhys Henry and Stuart O'Keefe were at Ipswich Town and Jamie Forshaw was at Norwich City. It was the only way to bring in the quality that would then start to come through into the first-team squad.

In five-ten years time, hopefully with a new stadium at Fossetts Farm and an Academy set-up, then we can start talking about bringing players through from 8/9 to the first-team squad. At the moment, that is pretty much impossible. The closest we have is James Lindie, who has been around for over four years in the Under-18s alone, and there are some youngsters in the Under-16s as well who are locally-based, but things won't just change overnight.

This is the best youth team squad that we have assembled, if not in history then certainly in my memory. Don't believe me? - get yourself down to Roots Hall on Thursday night! This group of talented individuals deserve your support, and the vast majority have spent the entireity of their scholarships with Southend United, which is when all the important stuff happens.

 

[Yorkshire Blue]

The closest we have is James Lindie, who has been around for over four years in the Under-18s alone

Disappointing that he hasn't progressed in 4 years then!

As I said before, I've nothing against getting talent in at whatever age, but until we are getting kids through the door at the age of 12 or whatever, and churning out first team regulars, I don't think we can rely on youth team set-up.

The difficult thing is that the recent increase in expenditure (and players like Moussa) increases expectation whilst the crop of players who should be progressing through the next couple of years is most likely the crop who suffered most from the cut-backs.

I think anything we get through the youth team in the next 5 years or so will basically be a bonus, but after then hopefully we can start producing a couple of first team players every couple of years.