By Albatross
April 7 2004

Hartlepool United's Youth Policy is paying dividends, with some impressive performances in the First Team this season from young players and also good results (so far) in the Dallas Cup. However, not every team has got it right.... Notts County have scrapped their Centre of Excellence setup, claiming that it wasn't producing enough players that progressed into the first team despite considerable investment. Pools experience though is very different - and events in the first team and in Dallas recently have emphasised the impact that our youth setup is having.

In Dallas, Pools youngsters today face their final group game knowing that qualification for the knockout stages is looking certain. Three points clear of Dallas Inter Black and Capital SC, and with a much better goal difference, they face Florida team West Broward United - a side that have already lost to the other two sides in the group and have little to play for except pride. Finish top and Pools also have the advantage of playing the second placed team with the best record rather than another group winner. With the squad including players with first team experience (Brackstone, Foley and Wilkinson) through to u16 players from the Centre of Excellence, our second foray in this tournament is once more providing our players with some useful experience.

Meanwhile, a number of those involved in last night's 4-3 win against Luton are also either in our youth ranks or graduates from it. Four of them started the match (Provett, Craddock, Sweeney and Boyd), while Istead came on as a subtitute. A number of others have also played in our first team this season - in fact there have been no fewer than eleven, and ten of them have started at least one game. Others have been included in squads, including Andy Appleby, and many more have broken into the reserves. We regularly have players from the Centre of Excellence playing for the Youth Team - often against players three years older than them - and generally aquitting themselves well.

Having former Youth supremo Martin Scott as assistant manager is definately helping some of these players move through into first team contention. Newell - and Turner too for that matter - often seemed reluctant to bring these younger players through: Provett had precisely one start before Cooper took over, and that was when we fielded the reserves in the LDV Trophy; Matty Robson never made it beyond the bench; and plenty of others found themselves getting to the reserves and no further. It has to be said that this may be partly in some cases because of a not especially outstanding crop of young players last season. Sweeney had of course already signed a deal, and of those we released Colin McKenzie is currently in the Northen League with Bedlington, where he recently faced former team-mate Marc Batey who is at Brandon with Stephen Flockett; Stephen Manson ended up in Unibond Div1 at Bishop Auckland. Incidentally, Gordon Simms, who was released at the same time, is now playing for Ballymena United after a spell with Derry City.

Scott though has been able to help Cooper bring through a number of players that he thought were capable of playing for the first team, and we're starting to reap the benefits. Notts County may think they've got a better way of doing things, but it's working very well for us.....

Meanwhile, Jermaine Easter has extended his loan deal at Cambridge until the end of the season. Any permanent deal will have to wait until the the managerial situation becomes clear at the Abbey Stadium, but Easter seems to be impressing a few people down there and it can't be ruled out.