Young players

How many young players have Bolton successfully brought through their ranks since the turn of the millennium?

I'm not just talking about homegrown players or players from the area, but also players that have been acquired from other clubs at a young age (mid-late teens) who have gone on to make it in some form.

Define some form. Tom eaves will have made it as a succesful sales assistant this time next year.

y2johnny wrote:Define some form.  Tom eaves will have made it as a succesful sales assistant this time next year.

Bottom English division upwards, the top two Scottish divisions or any of the top two European countries leagues.

Nolan, Hunt, O'Brien in our first team Basham and Danny Ward at other clubs. Vela, Clough and Holding now. That's all I can think of off the top of my head. A very poor return really, particularly given the level of investment in the academy.

Oh and Vaz Te.

Wow I've learned something. I didn't know Kevin Nolan had come through your ranks. Thanks for that.

Sorry after reading my last post it does come across as I'm being sarcastic. I'm not, it's genuine and I didn't know.

How about Joe Riley and Rob Lainton - both now at Bury. You might also be able to make a case for Marco Alonso now at Fiorentina.

Jay Jay Okocha was 17 in Nigerian years when he joined us. Does that count?

Blerim Dzemaili is a Swiss International and we sold him to Torino but he now plays for Galatasaray. Did his ACL when he was with us so never got a look in.

There are a host of others who played for us and have moved on to lower leagues - we sold 7 to lower league teams in the past three years - but our own youth programme was set further back by a series of incoming loans of youth players from other clubs in the period you mention e.g. Weiss, Sturridge, Wilshere etc who were contracted to play and minimised the first team opportunities for our own young players. Some of them were crap TBH.

And it's still going on with the likes of Wellington and Prince who really shouldn't be here when we need to blood our U21s and push the U18s to play at a higher level.

Obviously the big four or five clubs get the pick of young players so ours will never be top class but some of them could do a decent job.