Percy plunkett wrote: April 30th, 2022, 11:49 pm
I understand what you are saying but,have you seen them play,probably not.I have seen the academy about eight times this year and,they have both been consistent every time.I agree that you don’t throw too many in at once but my point is,where is the Development squad,will we have one next year,if so,why aren’t these lads staying.The purpose of a Development squad is for lads to move up a level to see if they can progress further.Ryan-Phillips scored again today,he is a CB,he has scored from set plays on a regular basis,he defends well winning his headers and battles,why is he going.The reason must be that the club will not have a Development squad next season,my question is,why not,it cannot be that he hasn’t impressed because I think he has,he has been consistent for two years so ,why is he leaving.
I have not seen them play and from reports / results they appear to compete well at their level. The key is can they step up, I guess finances and available games may be the issue with a Development Squad we started this season with that aim but how many games did they play and I question how competitive it is compared to league football and against experienced pro’s.
The other issue is that the academy has never produced a league player to date - we have had luck picking up cast offs from Cardiff / Bristol and adding a final bit of development but none home grown, does this suggest issues at the early ages in terms of selection, development and quality?
I have been watching County 50 years and these discussions were around in the 70’s we had a good run for a while Aizlewood, Lowndes and Vaughan I believe came through the youth set up but there was a reserve team in those days which clubs can no longer afford or have an appetite for.