Academy Products : Sat Jul 19, 2014 8:14 am  

Hopefully news in today's T&A that the academy is being rebuilt is not spin and actually happens, but it made me think about the players currently running around Super League and the NRL that were products of the academy, I came up with a pretty strong team especially in the pack, couldn't think of anyone to play full back, improvements with players I've missed?

????????
Atkins
Wardle
Ferres
Karl Pryce
Leon
Bridge
Koppy
Carlisle
JP
Whitehead
Bateman
Sam

The Burgess boys
Patrick

Re: Academy Products : Sat Jul 19, 2014 8:20 am  

Sykes?

It's a horrible thought, but it would allow you to complete the team. If not, Curtis Naughton.

You can still add in Langley, Donaldson, Addy, Olbison, Jason Crookes and probably a few more. Although I'm not sure any would make the starting team (Crookes might, depending on whether K Pryce is the promising youngster with a clutch of medals and international caps ahead of him, or the bloke that didn't try very hard) they do help to emphasise the point.

Re: Academy Products : Sat Jul 19, 2014 7:18 pm  

You can take bridge off that list.
Looking at that squad- that right there is why you are where you are now.

Re: Academy Products : Sat Jul 19, 2014 10:54 pm  

Curtis Naughton FB?

[Bulliac]

Re: Academy Products : Sun Jul 20, 2014 9:03 am  

jools wrote:

You can take bridge off that list.
Looking at that squad- that right there is why you are where you are now.

Chris Bridge started at Bradford.

Re: Academy Products : Sun Jul 20, 2014 9:29 am  

how man of those were let go because of big name signings?
i know the likes of whitehead,koppy wanted out, larne went to australia, but sykes, atkins?

and to be fair you got good service from JP, the burgess bros.koppy,whitehead,bateman,leon and karl.

[Bulliac]

Re: Academy Products : Sun Jul 20, 2014 10:03 am  

meast wrote:

how man of those were let go because of big name signings?
i know the likes of whitehead,koppy wanted out, larne went to australia, but sykes, atkins?

and to be fair you got good service from JP, the burgess bros.koppy,whitehead,bateman,leon and karl.

After Wigan in the 90s, that was the main reason behind the cap though; the intention was to prevent clubs hoarding players who weren't going to get a game and those players then have the right to go where they will be more valued, this is not something to criticise any club for since that is what happened at all clubs. We have players who came through other club's academies.

Whitehead and Kopczak left to get security and after the recent troubles it's difficult to not have sympathy, but many others, Sykes and Atkins, and numerous others over the years, left simply due to the then coach feeling they weren't the best in their positions at the time. Bridge left for off-field disciplinary reasons. Sometimes sod's law comes into play and when you have, maybe three really good centres on the books, you can bet your life that the big star in the academy is a centre who is needing to step up...

Re: Academy Products : Sun Jul 20, 2014 10:31 am  

To be fair, every club could produce a list as good if not better than that. When I first started watching RL they used to say that Fev would be world beaters if they could hold onto their stars that they brought through. We were as bad as anyone when it came to signing other teams players. We were a "cheque book" club at one time.

Diskin was on the radio a few weeks ago saying the junior development at Odsal was one of the best but in the last two years we have lost nearly all of them. The Saints chairman said a club needs to spend nearly a third of it's money on developing their own talent. Leeds, Wigan and Saints do that. We need a chairman with the same beliefs. Hopefully, Green does but it will take a few years before they are ready to step up into the first team like they have in the past. Until then we may need to bring in some seasoned pro's like we did when we got the likes of Dwyer, Nichol, Lauchlan, Penguin and a few others.

Re: Academy Products : Sun Jul 20, 2014 11:16 am  

Bulliac wrote:

Chris Bridge started at Bradford.

He came through the hudds academy alongside tony smith. You took him when we were relegated then loaned him back to us.

Re: Academy Products : Mon Jul 21, 2014 8:02 am  

woolly07 wrote:

To be fair, every club could produce a list as good if not better than that. When I first started watching RL they used to say that Fev would be world beaters if they could hold onto their stars that they brought through. We were as bad as anyone when it came to signing other teams players. We were a "cheque book" club at one time.

Diskin was on the radio a few weeks ago saying the junior development at Odsal was one of the best but in the last two years we have lost nearly all of them. The Saints chairman said a club needs to spend nearly a third of it's money on developing their own talent. Leeds, Wigan and Saints do that. We need a chairman with the same beliefs. Hopefully, Green does but it will take a few years before they are ready to step up into the first team like they have in the past. Until then we may need to bring in some seasoned pro's like we did when we got the likes of Dwyer, Nichol, Lauchlan, Penguin and a few others.

It might be worth spending a third of its player outlay on the academy for clubs like Wigan, Leeds and Saints but for other clubs it is a total waste of money.

Unless you are in the top 4/5 and have a realistic chance of getting to finals the market will dictate those players who will stay and those that won't. For example George Burgess never played a game for the Bulls.