Jump to content

Academy Player Apps


Saint Charlie
 Share

Recommended Posts

Oakley 311

Lallana 250*

Bridge 174

Surman 146

 

That's the entire list of 100+ appearances of academy graduates who have featured this century. Surprisingly few, but then I guess the likes of Bale, Walcott and Chamberlain all left before they'd played 50 games.

 

What's particularly impressive is the number of current squad members with 100+ appearances: K Davis (292), Lallana (250), Lambert (220), Schneiderlin (218 ), Fonte (168 ), Cork (124), Guly (113).

 

Full list of 100+ appearances: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Southampton_F.C._players

Link to comment
Share on other sites

What about MLT? Swear he was on youth terms for a year before signing a pro contract so should his 400+ apps not be up there too?

 

He was a trialist, even had a go at Oxford United first, not technically an academy product.... If we need to thank anyone it's Vale Recreation in Guernsey.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

According to that link Terry Paine made 815 appearances in the 17 years between 1957 - 1974, which works out an average of 47 appearances a season!! Christ that's impressive, especially with a few England appearances on top of that.

 

edit: I know most fans probably know this fact, and I'm well aware Paine is a saints legend, I'd just never really took the time to read the statistics about him.

Edited by bpsaint
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Everybody's forgotten Benali. He played for saints this century, came through the academy and featured well over 100 times.

 

Was thinking slightly more recently but of course that is true.

 

Suprising how few have done it though.

 

Perhaps an argument to suggest that our Academy hasn't really produced quality players for our first team long term but instead has developed players for football in general.

 

Certainly of the more recent Academy players only Lallana has anything near Saints hero/legend status which is a shame considering the volume and quality of player the system generates.

 

Sadly Chambers will be another unlikely to reach 100 games.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Suprising how few have done it though.

 

Perhaps an argument to suggest that our Academy hasn't really produced quality players for our first team long term but instead has developed players for football in general.

Is it that surprising? Or is it just a function of the modern game?

 

One-club-men are a very small minority in the PL era. I think the average stay for a pro player at a club is just over 2 seasons (less than 100 matches), and transfers are skewed towards the beginning and end of a player's career. So it stands to reason that the vast majority of academy graduates won't hit that landmark before moving on.

 

Does that devalue the achievement of the academy? Id argue the opposite. It's more of an achievement to produce a player of sufficiently quality to be attractive to a better team. It says more to have produced Gareth Bale who has gone on to become the most expensive player in the world, than it does to produce Francis Benali who arguably never attracted any attention from a top tier club.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

He was a trialist, even had a go at Oxford United first, not technically an academy product.... If we need to thank anyone it's Vale Recreation in Guernsey.

 

He wasn't a triallist, he signed YTS in 1985 when he was 16. He had a trial at Oxford when he was 15 but never signed for them. I think he only really played the one season (and scored over 50 goals), as he was with the first team fairly early in his career.

 

You can also add Shearer and Maddison to the list of players with over 100 appearances from that same youth period.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

Does that devalue the achievement of the academy? Id argue the opposite. It's more of an achievement to produce a player of sufficiently quality to be attractive to a better team. It says more to have produced Gareth Bale who has gone on to become the most expensive player in the world, than it does to produce Francis Benali who arguably never attracted any attention from a top tier club.

 

The sum of Benali's appearances made a far greater impact on Saints than the transfer money we got for Bale.

 

Club has said the role of the Academy is to produce players for our first team and to have 50% making up the starting XI. If you let players go before they really start realising potential then that will never be very hard to do whilst also playing at a high level.

 

When Kids grown up in our Academy they see it as a way to join a big club rather than play for Saints which is a shame.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The sum of Benali's appearances made a far greater impact on Saints than the transfer money we got for Bale.

 

Club has said the role of the Academy is to produce players for our first team and to have 50% making up the starting XI. If you let players go before they really start realising potential then that will never be very hard to do whilst also playing at a high level.

 

When Kids grown up in our Academy they see it as a way to join a big club rather than play for Saints which is a shame.

 

 

This is another club claim that had the cynics rolling about laughing (along with 'Premier League in 5 years) yet, amazingly, we are pretty much there now. We've seen Lallana, Shaw, Chambers, Ward Prowse and Gallagher all on the pitch at the same time. And still we have Reed on the bench! I really think we have broken the mould of being a selling club. Yes, there may be exceptional talents who decide to move on, but if they did not we would soon have some talent frustrated by not being able to break through to first team football.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is another club claim that had the cynics rolling about laughing (along with 'Premier League in 5 years) yet, amazingly, we are pretty much there now. We've seen Lallana, Shaw, Chambers, Ward Prowse and Gallagher all on the pitch at the same time. And still we have Reed on the bench! I really think we have broken the mould of being a selling club. Yes, there may be exceptional talents who decide to move on, but if they did not we would soon have some talent frustrated by not being able to break through to first team football.

 

But if Shaw, Chamber and AL for example were to leave in the next two years then it would be JWP plyus Gallagher who isn't a proven first team player.

 

Shame that most of the better Academy players don't even stay for a fifth of their career.

 

We have been lucky with the quality of player we have had until now, but it can't carry on forever.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pre academy it was school of excellence, associate schoolboys and then apprentice or yts. Steve baker and rod Wallace both were at the club prior to the yts element, so confident enough to add them to the 100 plus club.

 

Bobby Stokes also served his apprenticeship with Saints, so shouldn't he also be counted. I am slightly less sure about Steve Moran, but given his locality I suspect he was training with the club long before he went pro at the age of 18.

Edited by Chez
Link to comment
Share on other sites

This is another club claim that had the cynics rolling about laughing (along with 'Premier League in 5 years) yet, amazingly, we are pretty much there now. We've seen Lallana, Shaw, Chambers, Ward Prowse and Gallagher all on the pitch at the same time. And still we have Reed on the bench! I really think we have broken the mould of being a selling club. Yes, there may be exceptional talents who decide to move on, but if they did not we would soon have some talent frustrated by not being able to break through to first team football.
I don't think anyone ever laughed at the idea of getting back into the Premier League in 5 years or using half a team of academy products - it was the Champions League aspirations attached to it that got people rightly chuckling. Edited by Sour Mash
Link to comment
Share on other sites

What about MLT? Swear he was on youth terms for a year before signing a pro contract so should his 400+ apps not be up there too?

Yeah, I basically just picked players who had played in the last decade or so (more or less since the FA Cup final). I was tired so accidentally wrote "this century" :blush:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pre academy it was school of excellence, associate schoolboys and then apprentice or yts. Steve baker and rod Wallace both were at the club prior to the yts element, so confident enough to add them to the 100 plus club.

 

Bobby Stokes also served his apprenticeship with Saints, so shouldn't he also be counted. I am slightly less sure about Steve Moran, but given his locality I suspect he was training with the club long before he went pro at the age of 18.

 

Lets not forget Danny Wallace who most certainly would have played more than 100, but the 3rd amigo, Ray was only there to make up the numbers and maybe a Guiness Book of Records attempt ;-)

 

Others further back who have cracked the 100 club after progressing from the younger ranks include illustrious players such as Martin Chivers, Micky Channon, Steve Moran and Stevie Williams. Then there was the successful North East youth recruitment which yielded Shearer, Maddison and Widderington (not sure if they make it into the 100 club). Around the same time Doddsy was picked up from the Bath area.

 

The lower leagues and Prem are littered with Academy players, who may not have clocked up a great many appearances, but whose transfer fees helped keeping the clunb in business and be in a position to be where we are now.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 months later...

This article says that 17 Saints academy graduates have played 5 or more times for the club in the Premier League?

 

 

SOUTHAMPTON GRADUATE XI

 

GK: N/A

 

Calum Chambers (12- ) Martin Crainie (04-07) Wayne Bridge (98-03) Luke Shaw (12- )

 

James Ward-Prowse (11- ) Matthew Oakley (94-06) Nathan Dyer (05-09)

 

Theo Walcott (05-06) Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (10-11)

 

Steve Basham (96-99)

 

 

No of seasons in the top-flight: 15

 

No of English graduates to appear five or more times in the Premier League: 17

 

SOUTHAMPTON GRADUATE XI GK: N/A Calum Chambers (12- ) Martin Crainie (04-07) Wayne Bridge (98-03) Luke Shaw (12- ) James Ward-Prowse (11- ) Matthew Oakley (94-06) Nathan Dyer (05-09) Theo Walcott (05-06) Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain (10-11) Steve Basham (96-99) No of seasons in the top-flight: 15 No of English graduates to appear five or more times in the Premier League: 17 Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/worldcup2014/article-2671578/Has-Premier-Leagues-love-foreign-stars-ruined-England-After-dismal-World-Cup-just-English-academy-graduates-YOUR-club-brought-through.html#ixzz35qxyX2C9

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...