[Report] Oldham Athletic U18 2-2 Sheffield United (3-4 on penalties)

[Foxy]

DazBlade88 's report on last nights FA Youth Cup victory is now up on the main site...

Sheffield United and Oldham Athletic got their FA Youth Cup campaign under way on Wednesday night and it turned into a battle between two number 10s as Otis Khan and Jordan Bove both scored twice in an entertaining contest at Boundary Park with drama aplenty....

CLICK HERE TO READ THE REPORT

 

[Bergen Blade]

DazBlade88 's report on last nights FA Youth Cup victory is now up on the main site...



CLICK HERE TO READ THE REPORT

Some questions for DazBlade88,

• Have the recent changes of academy managers (from Pembo to Hoyland to Binnion) affected the U18 do you think?
• Has the playing style remained the same?
• Are they still playing Weir's system (4-2-3-1)?
• How does Cockerline compare to Ironside?
• From the team you watched last night, who will be the next to make a first team appearance do you think?

 

[ghandi]

Some questions for DazBlade88,

• Have the recent changes of academy managers (from Pembo to Hoyland to Binnion) affected the U18 do you think?
• Has the playing style remained the same?
• Are they still playing Weir's system (4-2-3-1)?
• How does Cockerline compare to Ironside?
• From the team you watched last night, who will be the next to make a first team appearance do you think?

Hoyland was never the academy manager just the U-18s coach.

 

[DazBlade88]

Have the recent changes of academy managers (from Pembo to Hoyland to Binnion) affected the U18 do you think?

I think it did last season because there were a lot of changes in a short space of time, and with all 3 having different styles I felt a few players struggled to cope with it. However, now Binnion seems to have been running them for a sustained length of time along with the likes of John Dungworth, I think the players look much happier. You can tell they respect the opinions of the coaching staff too because you can visibly see them trying to execute what they're asked to from the sideline.

Has the playing style remained the same?

It's not as direct as under Hoyland, but it's not the short passing game we were used to under Pemberton. It seems to be a mix of the two. With Cockerline's sheer height, I think it's an easy option for them to hit his chest/head if they can't see an obvious pass. I think they use it too much personally, but they'll learn. When they do get it down and play we look a good side. We had an excellent passing move starting from the edge of our own box to the edge of their's last night and it was really good to see a spell of patient build up play and ball retention.

Are they still playing Weir's system (4-2-3-1)?

Yes. Virtually every academy side I've seen us play have used it too, and with the players we have it suits us in my opinion.

How does Cockerline compare to Ironside?

He's taller than Ironside, but I would say Ironside was stronger at his age. They're similar in their style of play and the 3 behind him must love playing off him because he's the perfect foil. He didn't get a real chance himself last night but he held the ball and used it well to create chances for others.

From the team you watched last night, who will be the next to make a first team appearance do you think?

It seems the obvious choice with how he's performed so far but it has to be Otis Khan. He's a second year scholar now, he's scoring for fun from midfield and as good as he was last season, he's improved greatly over the summer. He has an excellent attitude too which can only be a good thing in the long ru. Banton seems to doing well for the U21s too, but I think he's a good year away from first team action yet.

 

[Foxy]

It seems the obvious choice with how he's performed so far but it has to be Otis Khan. He's a second year scholar now, he's scoring for fun from midfield and as good as he was last season, he's improved greatly over the summer. He has an excellent attitude too which can only be a good thing in the long ru. Banton seems to doing well for the U21s too, but I think he's a good year away from first team action yet.

He looks to have grown in confidence to me, not over confidence, but enough of a swagger to be a little greedier in the right situations. He also seems to have been playing a free-er role when I've seen him this year.

 

[DazBlade88]

He looks to have grown in confidence to me, not over confidence, but enough of a swagger to be a litter greedier in the right situations. He also seems to have been playing a free-er role when I've seen him this year.

Definitely. He's drifting all over the place to pick the ball up and do something with it whether it's for himself or someone else.

The confidence is giving him more composure in those situations too, which is why I think he's scoring so many goals. The patience he showed for the first goal when he had a defender and the keeper to beat was really good.

 

[Silent Blade]

Reading the match report of the u18s win at Barnsley last Saturday, I see that Paul Koroma (u16s player) came on as sub with 10 minutes left. When I first saw him 4 years ago, he was massive and I thought he was an elder brother of the Sheffield Sixes u12s players. He ran at defences like a knife to butter. My son and his team mates would circle round him every time Paul had the ball. In that match when I first saw him, my son's team won 5-2 and my son scored direct from a free kick. See match stats below
http://full-time.thefa.com/DisplayFixture.do?id=3002052

 

[DazBlade88]

I've just seen that Jake Eastwood has been called up to the England U18 squad. Great news.

So with him, George Long, George Willis and Gareth Owen all between 17-21 and being called up for their country in the last couple of months. That's some achievement for our academy.

 

[billyblademan]

I've just seen that Jake Eastwood has been called up to the England U18 squad. Great news.

So with him, George Long, George Willis and Gareth Owen all between 17-21 and being called up for their country in the last couple of months. That's some achievement for our academy.

Ioan Evans as well?

 

[DazBlade88]

Ioan Evans as well?

Yeah, he's involved with Wales regularly and we have a few lads that play for Ireland.

The 4 I mentioned are all keepers, not often you see that!

 

[billyblademan]

Yeah, he's involved with Wales regularly and we have a few lads that play for Ireland.

The 4 I mentioned are all keepers, not often you see that!

Ah right, I knew the 3 G's were, didn't know about Jake.