Quote Originally Posted by the other bob wilson View Post
Just watched a highlights package on the jacks website and there was more coverage of attacks by us rather than them until it got to 2-0. The first goal may have prevented if the City wall had jumped, while the second one was a shocker as the centrebacks and keeper made a right mess of what was just a straightforward long punt down the middle.

Nevertheless, this result means that the jacks are now, almost certainly, going to win their eighth successive Welsh Youth Cup - what an indictment of our Academy that is.
It is a disappointing stat that Swansea have won it 8 years in a row but it doesn't change the fact that they were heavy favourites on Sunday and by all accounts we were by far the better side until a ridiculous defensive error cost us the second goal.

To bring some perspective, Swansea had 6 u21s in their starting line up on Sunday while I think we had 3. Possibly our two strongest players who would be u19 are out on loan at Weston so are ineligible to play.

We also had a 15 year old in Sion Spence not only starting but by all accounts (according to mate who is a Jack) was the best player on the pitch!

Swansea played the lad Joe Rodon who has been in the first team squad and is the next big thing down there and as a club they have been in a position to pay £250k to Hull academy to take Daniel James off their hands as a 16 year old.

We can just about pay 250k for a first team player these days.

We all know that the club has been mismanaged in recent years and that the academy has been largely forgotten about by first team managers since Sam Hamman left to be fair but there are many reasons to be optimistic at the moment.

The u18s have got one or two players training with the first team and for the first team in a long time are in serious contention for getting into Warnock's squad.

Under them we have kids like Spence and Bowen and would have had Matondo but his departure was out of the clubs control.

I went to Treforest on Sunday and watched Cardiff's younger kids beat Swansea convincingly at u10s u12s and u13s level on Sunday and we had the best players on the pitch at all those levels on Sunday. Apparently the 9s won too and the u11s drew but a few of their better players were playing up for the u12s.

I know all these kids are way way off affecting the first team at present but it just highlights that as an academy we are still more than competing despite the amount of money and category one status and Swansea's scatter gun approach in the valleys at the moment.

We are in decent shape at youth level Bob and having read Warnock's biography I believe if the kids are good enough they'll get their chance.