Squad for 2025-2026

[Sutekh]

I honestly think Wareham is the best forward to come out of the academy in over a decade. I don't think he's an out and out goalscorer but his overall game is strong for someone of his age. He looks miles ahead of where Sam Smith was at the same stage of his career.

Reading haven’t been particularly brilliant at producing strikers from the 25 years of their Academy. Think the list reads just Tyson, Henderson, Cox, Church, House, Smith and now Wareham and next, hopefully, Tuma.

Tyson and Henderson are still the best of what has been produced. House looks a handful from what I’ve seen of him at Lincoln and wouldn’t mind him back here, Smith needed to get away and then did come back here but is now in the 2nd tier with a chance to really prove his worth (or find himself back here again )

Wareham looks the part but there are still those moments you get with most youngsters when you wonder what he’s doing on the pitch at all and hopefully Tuma can bulk up a bit, retain his pace and start making a name for himself next season.

[Hendo]

I honestly think Wareham is the best forward to come out of the academy in over a decade. I don't think he's an out and out goalscorer but his overall game is strong for someone of his age. He looks miles ahead of where Sam Smith was at the same stage of his career.

Reading haven’t been particularly brilliant at producing strikers from the 25 years of their Academy. Think the list reads just Tyson, Henderson, Cox, Church, House, Smith and now Wareham and next, hopefully, Tuma.

Tyson and Henderson are still the best of what has been produced. House looks a handful from what I’ve seen of him at Lincoln and wouldn’t mind him back here, Smith needed to get away and then did come back here but is now in the 2nd tier with a chance to really prove his worth (or find himself back here again )

Wareham looks the part but there are still those moments you get with most youngsters when you wonder what he’s doing on the pitch at all and hopefully Tuma can bulk up a bit, retain his pace and start making a name for himself next season.

We've also had the following come through the academy as strikers (*maybe):

Long
Robson-Kanu*
Samuel
Fosu*
Loader
Ehibhatiomhan*
Vickers*

Could also add in Luca Fletcher to the list, even though he isn't technically a graduate.

[Stranded]

Can we really claim Wareham as an Academy graduate?

He signed at the end of the window in Aug/Sep '23 - he was born in May '03 so was already 20 (turns 22 next week) - so whilst he did indeed play for the u23s before coming into the squad, we had close to zero to do with his development.

[6ft Kerplunk]

There's no way we can claim Long as an academy kid. Came over and straight into the first team squad wasn't it?

[Sutekh]

I honestly think Wareham is the best forward to come out of the academy in over a decade. I don't think he's an out and out goalscorer but his overall game is strong for someone of his age. He looks miles ahead of where Sam Smith was at the same stage of his career.

Reading haven’t been particularly brilliant at producing strikers from the 25 years of their Academy. Think the list reads just Tyson, Henderson, Cox, Church, House, Smith and now Wareham and next, hopefully, Tuma.

Tyson and Henderson are still the best of what has been produced. House looks a handful from what I’ve seen of him at Lincoln and wouldn’t mind him back here, Smith needed to get away and then did come back here but is now in the 2nd tier with a chance to really prove his worth (or find himself back here again )

Wareham looks the part but there are still those moments you get with most youngsters when you wonder what he’s doing on the pitch at all and hopefully Tuma can bulk up a bit, retain his pace and start making a name for himself next season.

We've also had the following come through the academy as strikers (*maybe):

Long
Robson-Kanu*
Samuel
Fosu*
Loader
Ehibhatiomhan*
Vickers*

Could also add in Luca Fletcher to the list, even though he isn't technically a graduate.

Don’t think Fosu, Vickers, WiFi or Loader are technically strikers, more a combination of wingers and/or AMs who could fill in there if the club is/was desperate.

Long was only with the “academy” 6 months after arriving with Doyler for the joint fee of £78000

Robson-Kanu was mostly a winger but could do an effective job through the middle - possibly he is the best attacker that the academy has produced in its 25 years.

Missed Samuel! He was touted as the next best thing, but drifted into nothingness (he’s now 31 and at Ebbsfleet).

[Royalwaster]

Loader has to be one of the top ones - just not for us!

[Sutekh]

Loader has to be one of the top ones - just not for us!

Or Bynoe-Gittins though he was gone before he got a chance to impress us fans.

[WestYorksRoyal]

Loader has to be one of the top ones - just not for us!

Or Bynoe-Gittins though he was gone before he got a chance to impress us fans.

When we discuss Cat 1, one supposed advantage is it helps retain top talent, but big clubs still poach plenty of our talent of which Gittens is the best example. At the other end, we picked up Olise after Chelsea released him, while we let go Eze and N'Diaye who broke through at lower level academies.

Would Cat 2 really be that bad? Look at Charlton. The key thing is judging talent and creating a pathway, which you can do as Cat 2.

[Hendo]

Loader has to be one of the top ones - just not for us!

Or Bynoe-Gittins though he was gone before he got a chance to impress us fans.

When we discuss Cat 1, one supposed advantage is it helps retain top talent, but big clubs still poach plenty of our talent of which Gittens is the best example. At the other end, we picked up Olise after Chelsea released him, while we let go Eze and N'Diaye who broke through at lower level academies.

Would Cat 2 really be that bad? Look at Charlton. The key thing is judging talent and creating a pathway, which you can do as Cat 2.

The balance is, that if key talent does get poached then there is a bigger comp package with Cat 1.

[Snowflake Royal]

Or Bynoe-Gittins though he was gone before he got a chance to impress us fans.

When we discuss Cat 1, one supposed advantage is it helps retain top talent, but big clubs still poach plenty of our talent of which Gittens is the best example. At the other end, we picked up Olise after Chelsea released him, while we let go Eze and N'Diaye who broke through at lower level academies.

Would Cat 2 really be that bad? Look at Charlton. The key thing is judging talent and creating a pathway, which you can do as Cat 2.

The balance is, that if key talent does get poached then there is a bigger comp package with Cat 1.

But its still not actually that much money. You get the real bucks once they're on a professional contract and graduated to the first team squad. Or through a development cut on International transfers

[Sutekh]

When we discuss Cat 1, one supposed advantage is it helps retain top talent, but big clubs still poach plenty of our talent of which Gittens is the best example. At the other end, we picked up Olise after Chelsea released him, while we let go Eze and N'Diaye who broke through at lower level academies.

Would Cat 2 really be that bad? Look at Charlton. The key thing is judging talent and creating a pathway, which you can do as Cat 2.

The balance is, that if key talent does get poached then there is a bigger comp package with Cat 1.

But its still not actually that much money. You get the real bucks once they're on a professional contract and graduated to the first team squad. Or through a development cut on International transfers

Is someone able to spell out for us all the advantages that Cat 1 gives a club over Cat 2?

[Snowflake Royal]

The balance is, that if key talent does get poached then there is a bigger comp package with Cat 1.

But its still not actually that much money. You get the real bucks once they're on a professional contract and graduated to the first team squad. Or through a development cut on International transfers

Is someone able to spell out for us all the advantages that Cat 1 gives a club over Cat 2?

Makes it harder for other Cat 1s to poach from us.
Makes it easier for us to poach from Cat 2s
Better standard of integrated education for attendees
Better and more facilities
Better and more coaching and support.

Vs

All of that costs a lot more.

[rabidbee]

Presumably also there’s also the opportunity for our academy teams to play opposition of a higher standard, take part in international competitions, &c.

[Whore Jackie]

The big advantage with Category 1 Academies is they can recruit players nationally from U15 provided the Academy player is guaranteed access to a full term education programme. Cat 2 and 3 recruitment has to be local. No idea what local actually means in distance. If it was say 40 mile radius we'd still have access to much of London.

It's surprisingly difficult to access up-to-date info on academies, this list was correct August 2024:

Category 1 Academies
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Blackburn, Brighton, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Derby, Everton, Fulham, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Norwich, Nottingham Forest, Reading, Southampton, Stoke City, Sunderland, Tottenham, West Brom, West Ham, Wolves

Category 2 Academies
Bournemouth, Barnsley, Birmingham City, Brentford, Bristol, Cardiff, Charlton, Colchester, Coventry, Crewe Alexandra, Fleetwood, Hull City, Ipswich, Millwall, Norwich, Peterborough, QPR, Sheffield United, Sheffield Wednesday, Swansea, Watford, Wigan

[Sutekh]

Quite happy that there’s currently only 5/6 players contracted as of 1st July, means every aspect of the playing side will have to be gone over and carefully considered which can only be good.

Believe the priorities are a younger experienced left back version of Andy Yiadom and a couple of decent strikers that’ll help bring on Jayden Wareham. After that it’s a back up keeper and a couple of wide midfield options. Be rather useful if those who come in bring expertise at dead ball situations and enable the club to build a plan B.

To quote a famous Xmas tune - look to the future now, it’s only just begun.

[tidus_mi2]

The big advantage with Category 1 Academies is they can recruit players nationally from U15 provided the Academy player is guaranteed access to a full term education programme. Cat 2 and 3 recruitment has to be local. No idea what local actually means in distance. If it was say 40 mile radius we'd still have access to much of London.

It's surprisingly difficult to access up-to-date info on academies, this list was correct August 2024:

Category 1 Academies
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Blackburn, Brighton, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Derby, Everton, Fulham, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Norwich, Nottingham Forest, Reading, Southampton, Stoke City, Sunderland, Tottenham, West Brom, West Ham, Wolves

Category 2 Academies
Bournemouth, Barnsley, Birmingham City, Brentford, Bristol, Cardiff, Charlton, Colchester, Coventry, Crewe Alexandra, Fleetwood, Hull City, Ipswich, Millwall, Norwich, Peterborough, QPR, Sheffield United, Sheffield Wednesday, Swansea, Watford, Wigan

We must have the smallest revenue stream for all teams that have a Cat 1 academy and by quite some distance too.

[RFCMod]

The big advantage with Category 1 Academies is they can recruit players nationally from U15 provided the Academy player is guaranteed access to a full term education programme. Cat 2 and 3 recruitment has to be local. No idea what local actually means in distance. If it was say 40 mile radius we'd still have access to much of London.

It's surprisingly difficult to access up-to-date info on academies, this list was correct August 2024:

Category 1 Academies
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Blackburn, Brighton, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Derby, Everton, Fulham, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Norwich, Nottingham Forest, Reading, Southampton, Stoke City, Sunderland, Tottenham, West Brom, West Ham, Wolves

Category 2 Academies
Bournemouth, Barnsley, Birmingham City, Brentford, Bristol, Cardiff, Charlton, Colchester, Coventry, Crewe Alexandra, Fleetwood, Hull City, Ipswich, Millwall, Norwich, Peterborough, QPR, Sheffield United, Sheffield Wednesday, Swansea, Watford, Wigan

Well in terms of local then Bournemouth as a Cat 2 academy have been tapping youngsters from around our area for the last 5 years so it can't be that local

[Royals and Racers]

The big advantage with Category 1 Academies is they can recruit players nationally from U15 provided the Academy player is guaranteed access to a full term education programme. Cat 2 and 3 recruitment has to be local. No idea what local actually means in distance. If it was say 40 mile radius we'd still have access to much of London.

It's surprisingly difficult to access up-to-date info on academies, this list was correct August 2024:

Category 1 Academies
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Blackburn, Brighton, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Derby, Everton, Fulham, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Norwich, Nottingham Forest, Reading, Southampton, Stoke City, Sunderland, Tottenham, West Brom, West Ham, Wolves

Category 2 Academies
Bournemouth, Barnsley, Birmingham City, Brentford, Bristol, Cardiff, Charlton, Colchester, Coventry, Crewe Alexandra, Fleetwood, Hull City, Ipswich, Millwall, Norwich, Peterborough, QPR, Sheffield United, Sheffield Wednesday, Swansea, Watford, Wigan

Cat 1 is correct. Cat 2
Not Norwich but add Burnley

[Sutekh]

The big advantage with Category 1 Academies is they can recruit players nationally from U15 provided the Academy player is guaranteed access to a full term education programme. Cat 2 and 3 recruitment has to be local. No idea what local actually means in distance. If it was say 40 mile radius we'd still have access to much of London.

It's surprisingly difficult to access up-to-date info on academies, this list was correct August 2024:

Category 1 Academies
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Blackburn, Brighton, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Derby, Everton, Fulham, Leeds, Leicester, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Middlesbrough, Newcastle, Norwich, Nottingham Forest, Reading, Southampton, Stoke City, Sunderland, Tottenham, West Brom, West Ham, Wolves

Category 2 Academies
Bournemouth, Barnsley, Birmingham City, Brentford, Bristol, Cardiff, Charlton, Colchester, Coventry, Crewe Alexandra, Fleetwood, Hull City, Ipswich, Millwall, Norwich, Peterborough, QPR, Sheffield United, Sheffield Wednesday, Swansea, Watford, Wigan

Well in terms of local then Bournemouth as a Cat 2 academy have been tapping youngsters from around our area for the last 5 years so it can't be that local

Think Boremuff will be Cat 1 soon given they’ve apparently upgraded their facilities recently.

[Royal_jimmy]

Quite happy that there’s currently only 5/6 players contracted as of 1st July, means every aspect of the playing side will have to be gone over and carefully considered which can only be good.

Believe the priorities are a younger experienced left back version of Andy Yiadom and a couple of decent strikers that’ll help bring on Jayden Wareham. After that it’s a back up keeper and a couple of wide midfield options. Be rather useful if those who come in bring expertise at dead ball situations and enable the club to build a plan B.

To quote a famous Xmas tune - look to the future now, it’s only just begun.

Fully agreed. It can be a risky situation if there's disharmony or we're a small fish in the league but whoever we decide to keep should likely stay with us. We get to pick and choose and Noel Hunt and co will have the chance to build a team alongside help from the academy too. Hopefully we can make a couple of early signings in the transfer window too.

Definitely an interesting summer ahead!