Coyle on next season....

[H. Pedersen]

Nolan, O'Brien, Vaz Te, Hunt . . . compared to the handful of games that Basham or Ward or Riley or Vela have played I'd say Allardyce's record looks much better.

It's probably because he kept a small first team instead of buying two £2-4 million players for each position.

[BWFC_Insane]

Trouble is what Okocha says is pretty much true. That if you don't invest in the now and the future you're going to struggle. Interestingly the time when we should have made such a future investment was when Allardyce was here and we were comfortable in the top ten year after year. Allardyce however, wasn't interested in academies and youth teams, and I've heard that from some of the youngsters with the club at that time.

Allardyce brought more academy players into the team than Megson and Coyle combined.

ITK.

Fact.

I don't believe he brought any academy players into the first team. But anyhow....

[BWFC_Insane]

Nolan, O'Brien, Vaz Te, Hunt . . . compared to the handful of games that Basham or Ward or Riley or Vela have played I'd say Allardyce's record looks much better.

It's probably because he kept a small first team instead of buying two £2-4 million players for each position.

Nolan was signed by Todd, Joey O Brien was plucked from an Irish youth side, Vaz Te was part of some Portuguese youth team, Hunt I believe was part of the Man Utd youth setup but was released and we picked him up.

None of them were home grown and certainly not academy products.

Vela and Riley have been with the club since they were 14. They are I believe the first academy players we've brought through fully to the first team for a long time.

[TKIZ!]

Trouble is what Okocha says is pretty much true. That if you don't invest in the now and the future you're going to struggle. Interestingly the time when we should have made such a future investment was when Allardyce was here and we were comfortable in the top ten year after year. Allardyce however, wasn't interested in academies and youth teams, and I've heard that from some of the youngsters with the club at that time.

Allardyce brought more academy players into the team than Megson and Coyle combined.

ITK.

Fact.

I don't believe he brought any academy players into the first team. But anyhow....

Aye

[Hoboh]

They stopped building the Fat Kitman deveolpment when Coyle caused the funding to dry up.

It's full of tramps now.

have no problem with criticism

Wellll after a statement like that!!!! you may find you will

[Wandering Willy]

[H. Pedersen]

Nolan was signed by Todd, Joey O Brien was plucked from an Irish youth side, Vaz Te was part of some Portuguese youth team, Hunt I believe was part of the Man Utd youth setup but was released and we picked him up.

None of them were home grown and certainly not academy products.

Vela and Riley have been with the club since they were 14. They are I believe the first academy players we've brought through fully to the first team for a long time.

I think we're splitting hairs over who counts as an "academy player" or "home grown." I think the larger point can be summed up by the fact that when Allardyce needed a right back he played Hunt or O'Brien, whereas Megson bought Steinsson and Ricketts and Coyle bought Mears and loaned in Boyata.

[TANGODANCER]

Right back has always begged the question from me: Have we really come that far from Nicky Hunt?

[BWFC_Insane]

Nolan was signed by Todd, Joey O Brien was plucked from an Irish youth side, Vaz Te was part of some Portuguese youth team, Hunt I believe was part of the Man Utd youth setup but was released and we picked him up.

None of them were home grown and certainly not academy products.

Vela and Riley have been with the club since they were 14. They are I believe the first academy players we've brought through fully to the first team for a long time.

I think we're splitting hairs over who counts as an "academy player" or "home grown." I think the larger point can be summed up by the fact that when Allardyce needed a right back he played Hunt or O'Brien, whereas Megson bought Steinsson and Ricketts and Coyle bought Mears and loaned in Boyata.

Call me old fashioned but for me an academy player is ermmm, one that has at least been a part of your academy.......

[Lord Kangana]

HP is making a reasonable point, you're just splitting hairs.

[BWFC_Insane]

HP is making a reasonable point, you're just splitting hairs.

He's making an incorrect point. We weren't producing our own players. Thats the bottom line.

[boltonboris]

We had Hunt from 14/15. We had Nolan from 16 (he even won academy player of the year). O'Brien was with us when he was 15.

We produced those players through our Academy.

[thebish]

We had Hunt from 14/15. We had Nolan from 16 (he even won academy player of the year). O'Brien was with us when he was 15.

We produced those players through our Academy.

that's a bit of a clincher!!

[jaffka]

We had Hunt from 14/15. We had Nolan from 16 (he even won academy player of the year). O'Brien was with us when he was 15.

We produced those players through our Academy.

that's a bit of a clincher!!

Sounds like they are academy players to me.

[David Lee's Hair]

Allardyces had a hell of a lot longer to manage to bring all those in though... 8 years against the rest.

[boltonboris]

That wasn't the point...

[TKIZ!]

So what is?

[H. Pedersen]

Allardyces had a hell of a lot longer to manage to bring all those in though... 8 years against the rest.

He had only been in the job a few years when he put Nicky Hunt into the team. And it’s not like Nicky Hunt was some genius prospect. It’s just that when you learn playing next to Bruno N’Gotty and Gudni Bergsson, you just might turn out OK. Allardyce kept a small squad and plugged holes with whatever he had available. Megson and Coyle didn’t really blood the kids because they were constantly struggling to keep their head above water. They rely on journeymen like Paul Robinson and Darren Pratley because they didn’t have a point cushion that allowed them to take risks on kids.

[Prufrock]

Off the top of my head Nolan and Dean Holden and a few other kids all made their debuts (or full debuts) in a dead-rubber last game of the season (against I think Sheff Utd)when we had already qualified for the play-offs, in what must have been Sam's first season in charge, because I'm sure Nolan started the play-off final.

Whether or not he gets credit for 'bringing them through' is a different question, but it didn't take him 8 years to throw kids in. Holden got games the year after until he broke his leg, Nolan and later Hunt became regulars, O'Brien and Vaz Te were more than bit part players. And who could forget ex-postie Jeff Smith!

[adamworthy2002]

Tom Eaves could do well in the championship

Scored some great goals in the reserves

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OD9q_5xMP3M" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;