Is there really any point of BWFC having an academy?

Apols for LITTLEWHIT capitalisation.

Moulden was THE hottest property as a kid, having scored 300 or whatever goals in a season. His parents who ran the chippy on Thicketford Rd weren't Whites. As is pretty common round here, unfortunately.

 

I used to play with a kid from Breightmet who was in THAT United team as a kid, and was one of the two who didn't make it. Had he gone elsewhere, who knows.

 

The answer might be that Crewe have good coaching and as a small club are under less pressure to achieve so can put kids in. Only Platt from that list was top notch. And he was at United as a kid.

 

aye, joined Utd when he was 19 which is later than when nolan joined us

 

robbie savage too, he was in the same team as neville, scholes, butt 

 

and a quick wiki session says:

 

geoff thomas started at rochdale

 

neil lennon at city

 

 

whereas rob jones from wrexham, powell from crewe, danny murphy from chester and dean ashton from congleton all joined Crewe

 

so they're as good as picking up cast offs as they are attracting players from not too far away, so a good catchment area helps as much as offering a chance they don't get elsewhere

they're as good as picking up cast offs as they are attracting players from not too far away, so a good catchment area helps as much as offering a chance they don't get elsewhere

 

But we share that catchment area, we're a bigger club and we were offering chances to play in our first team in a higher league than Crewe were in for most of the 1980's.

 

I reckon Carlos is right that Crewe's coaching set-up was/is of a higher standard than ours and you've also got a point about picking up other club's cast offs, which suggests that their scouting set-up was/is better than ours as well.

 

Wouldn't it be easier to just poach some of their scouts and coaching staff?

Crewe used to pick up plenty of scousers not considered good enough for Liverpool or Everton.

 

Geoff Thomas started at Rochdale, as he lived in Milnrow where he was an electrician. I only know this because he married my cousin.

But we share that catchment area, we're a bigger club and we were offering chances to play in our first team in a higher league than Crewe were in for most of the 1980's.

 

 

not sure bout that, we're 50 miles away so whilst some areas are arguably in the same area like warrington or something, it'd be easier for kids from east/west/south of crewe to play for them, espcially with the reputation they have, which as said comes down to the set up probably

 

blackburn seem to do ok though

 

apart from that, anyone else in the NW other than the obvious bring owt through?

But we share that catchment area, we're a bigger club and we were offering chances to play in our first team in a higher league than Crewe were in for most of the 1980's.

 

 

 

 

Think one of the attractions of Crewe is just that. You are more likely to get 1st team football in a League 1 or 2 side.

 

Most of the Academy players in top Premiership teams never get a sniff of 1st team football which is vital for their development.

 

It's even more the case now as they are filling their ranks with foreigners.

 

The new Academy system which means the top teams can sweep up all the talent will be a huge waste of resources if they can't get 1st team football.

 

It's a big problem for the England national side now and will get worse as things stand.

Crewe have kids success because the club is always on its arse therefore they have no other option but to play em and eventually one will do alright.

 

Throw enough mud and some will stick kind of attitude.

David Platt did his apprenticeship at Man Utd, only joined Crewe at 18/19.

 

Similar story with Craig Hignett, joined them after Liverpool didn't offer him a pro contract. His first trial match after leaving Anfield was at Burnden but Crewe nipped in whilst we dithered.

I remember asking Dean Crombie 20+ years ago why we kept missing local players, he seemed clueless TBH.

Crewe have kids success because the club is always on its arse therefore they have no other option but to play em

 

I think I agree with Chris for once.

 

Still, plenty of other clubs are in the same position as them so you've got to give them credit for seemingly doing it better than most,

Crewe have kids success because the club is always on its arse therefore they have no other option but to play em and eventually one will do alright.

 

But we were in the same position in the 80's and kids went to Crewe rather than us. I take Zico's point about catchment area but Platt was at Utd and Thomas at Rochdale, which is surely nearer to us than Crewe. I know you can't possibly sign every kid who's rejected by another club, but they do seem to have an uncanny knack of spotting talent.

In the 80's. I was in the same school team as Jason Wilcox, when Bolton and other NW teams came to watch us, the Bolton youth coach told my school coach that even though I was a good player, I was too small in height for them to be interested. I went on to sign schoolboy forms with Preston and had a bad knee injury in my first season and so ending my career. You never know if you'd make it, but it always stuck with me that my hometown team made a decision, not based on if I was any good, but because I was only 5" 2". Other lads from other school teams at the time said that even though they had other NW teams scouting, it was rare if anyone from Bolton ever turned up to watch.

At uni, I taught a lad from Blackpool, he was signed up by us. He said he wasn't any good but he'd developed young so was just the biggest...

Edited September 4, 201312 yr by Carlos

I'd sign Platt now

 

In the 80's. I was in the same school team as Jason Wilcox, when Bolton and other NW teams came to watch us, the Bolton youth coach told my school coach that even though I was a good player, I was too small in height for them to be interested. I went on to sign schoolboy forms with Preston and had a bad knee injury in my first season and so ending my career. You never know if you'd make it, but it always stuck with me that my hometown team made a decision, not based on if I was any good, but because I was only 5" 2". Other lads from other school teams at the time said that even though they had other NW teams scouting, it was rare if anyone from Bolton ever turned up to watch.

No offence Wullie as this isn't a personal response, but that was a stock response and a fob off; 99% of the time it just meant that they didn't fancy you for whatever reason (doesn't mean they were right though!)

 

It was the stock reason given to most of the lads I know that didn't make it 80's / early - mid 90's

 

It's an easy get out for them as if they say you're not good enough that was seen as being more "arguable" and the thought pattern was that they'd look dafter if you came good and they'd said you weren't "talented" enough

 

I'm sure in the odd case the height thing was true, but that's just an indication of how backward we are/were

In the 80's. I was in the same school team as Jason Wilcox, when Bolton and other NW teams came to watch us, the Bolton youth coach told my school coach that even though I was a good player, I was too small in height for them to be interested. I went on to sign schoolboy forms with Preston and had a bad knee injury in my first season and so ending my career. You never know if you'd make it, but it always stuck with me that my hometown team made a decision, not based on if I was any good, but because I was only 5" 2". Other lads from other school teams at the time said that even though they had other NW teams scouting, it was rare if anyone from Bolton ever turned up to watch.

Heard these sorts of tales before

 

Going back to the original question; as none of cast offs have made it good elsewhere, and few have succeeded here then it might justify not bothering.

 

FWIW I reckon it's more important than ever to have one and it will be interesting to see what DF does this year

Oh and as for Crewe, the likes of them and Oldham had a really good scouting network in the 80's / 90's - they were everywhere

No offence Wullie as this isn't a personal response, but that was a stock response and a fob off; 99% of the time it just meant that they didn't fancy you for whatever reason (doesn't mean they were right though!)

 

It was the stock reason given to most of the lads I know that didn't make it 80's / early - mid 90's

 

It's an easy get out for them as if they say you're not good enough that was seen as being more "arguable" and the thought pattern was that they'd look dafter if you came good and they'd said you weren't "talented" enough

 

I'm sure in the odd case the height thing was true, but that's just an indication of how backward we are/were

None taken, but it couldn't be for lack of speed as placed 6th in the Lancs under 18's 100metres, 10th in the cross country, and made the last 50 of the UK soccer skills (Kev Grundy in my year at school won it overall). I suppose my point was, I was offered terms at Rochdale, Oldham, Bury and Preston, who didn't seem too think I had potential. In the 1980's, it was widely accepted that as a young kid, you didn't sign up with Bolton to make it. Jason went to Blackburn because their set up was far superior (and they were in a higher league then).

We must have been doing something right in the 70's to bring through the likes of Reid, Allardyce, Jones, etc. Us and Burnley were amongst the best clubs in the area for developing talent. Did we just dismantle the whole set-up in the 80's?

The vast majority of Burnley's recruits were from County Durham for a long time. Then when they had established a reputation for developing talent they picked from near and far.

 

I've told before the story of Steve Kindon. In 1972 he went to Jimmy Adamson, told him he had found the girl he was going to marry and was thinking of buying a house, but wanted to know where he stood with Burnley. Adamson put his arm around his shoulder and said: "Son, we're going to build the team of the Seventies around you." So he got engaged, bought a house, and 3 weeks later he was transferred to Wolves (because Leighton James was now preferred).

Wonder if he got his money back on thouws

'An injury'

 

Or

 

'They said I was too small'

 

Are the two greatest cop out stories in elite youth football!

Cruciate ligament injury, anteria ligament damage and cracked knee cap and no fancy operation to fix them back then

Which is certainly more believable than 'my knees had gone so I was told to give up'

Cruciate ligament injury, anteria ligament damage and cracked knee cap and no fancy operation to fix them back then

The anterior ligament and cruciate ligament are the same thing; you have 2 cruciate ligaments; anterior and posterior; they cross

 

ACL and PCL

 

JSL