Mr Dad Posted 2 October, 2011 Share Posted 2 October, 2011 Before the Watford game in a pub, I was speaking to a Watford supporter. He seemed very clued up and was a long term season ticket holder at Watford. It turned out that he now lives in Southampton but keeps up his ST and attends the games. Fair play! He asked me if David Connelly was playing as Watford supporters had a song ready for him. I can't remember the words but it transpired that they weren’t happy with David because he had been trained in the Watford equivalent of our Saints Academy and he left pretty soon after graduating. The Watford guy had an encyclopedic knowledge of the game and reminded me of the time when Watford was 4-0 down on the first leg of a cup game then turned it round by winning 7-1 in the second leg at Watford. He was a nice guy, a true football supporter. The reason that he mentioned Connelly was that he came through the Watford Academy and the supporters at the time felt that he didn’t show enough loyalty to the club. He left too quickly to further his career and didn’t give Watford enough benefit of his ability and took the money too soon. He said that approximately 50% of Watford players came through the academy and that it was an essential source of players. He also mentioned the financial basis of Watford FC. When they played West Ham, the top wage earner at West Ham was on 70% of the total turnover of Watford FC. He was questioning the funding of the game and how its difficult for an average club to survive. I used to know a girl who was a Watford season ticket holder and I asked him the stupid question, “I know this is a one in twenty thousand question but do you know xxx who is a Watford supporter”. He answered “No but with the way Watford support is dropping off, it won’t be long before I know all Watford supporters by name!” Now, I know we have done OK with Chamberlin etc who did play for us for a while but how long is it before other clubs don’t bother with an Academy because it is used by young players who want a route to the Premiership? With any luck, we’ll be there and Academy players will have a route straight there. However, I do worry about smaller clubs and whether they will be able to afford to keep up this great way to enable home grown talent to progress through the English football system? DC has done great job for us and our Academy players are doing a great job for other clubs. But how long can smaller clubs afford to keep up and academy/youth scheme? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CWD Posted 2 October, 2011 Share Posted 2 October, 2011 We will continue to bring players through into the first team, but selling players like Theo, Bale and AOC has been essential in keeping the club running over the last few years. More will stay at the club for longer now that we are becoming more successful, but players will still be sold if the right offer comes in. That's the future of our academy in my opinion. Also, sorry to go all MLG on you but it's David CONNOLLY. People keep writing Connelly! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Golden Balls Posted 2 October, 2011 Share Posted 2 October, 2011 Even if players don't stay loyal to the clubs, it's worth it for the income. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 2 October, 2011 Share Posted 2 October, 2011 So, was DC really injured on Saturday, then ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint_clark Posted 2 October, 2011 Share Posted 2 October, 2011 So, was DC really injured on Saturday, then ? Are you suggesting that he was left out to avoid mild abuse from fans who are still sore over an event that must have happened about 15 years ago? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scotty Posted 2 October, 2011 Share Posted 2 October, 2011 So, was DC really injured on Saturday, then ? Are you suggesting that he was left out to avoid mild abuse from fans who are still sore over an event that must have happened about 15 years ago? Yes he is. DC never gets injured, it must have been a ploy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 3 October, 2011 Share Posted 3 October, 2011 Are you suggesting that he was left out to avoid mild abuse from fans who are still sore over an event that must have happened about 15 years ago? If it were yer average NPC player, then no, I wouldnt contemplate it. But he has demonstrated a bit of sensitivity to chanting from the crowd with the "back from the dead" song. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saint_clark Posted 3 October, 2011 Share Posted 3 October, 2011 If it were yer average NPC player, then no, I wouldnt contemplate it. But he has demonstrated a bit of sensitivity to chanting from the crowd with the "back from the dead" song. All he said was that he thought it was time we left it behind - which we then did. It's entirely possible that he had young kids that were confused or even upset by that chance - jumping to conclusions, I know, but no more so than your theory about him being "protected". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Viking Warrior Posted 3 October, 2011 Share Posted 3 October, 2011 So Alpine are you insinuating NA is a liar when he said DC had a knock and was injured by any chance? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scott_saints Posted 3 October, 2011 Share Posted 3 October, 2011 I blame 9/11. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tokyo-Saint Posted 3 October, 2011 Share Posted 3 October, 2011 I didn't hear Watford sing anything all game, so he didn't have anything to worry about. On the Radio Adkins said that he has played a lot of games recently and his calf felt a bit tight, they therefore decided no to risk it. Giving him a couple of weeks off to rest seems like a sensible idea. Why run a player with a poor medical record into the ground? I like our current better safe than sorry approach to injuries and it seems like we are getting less repeat injuries. The medical staff seem to be doing a great job at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alpine_saint Posted 3 October, 2011 Share Posted 3 October, 2011 So Alpine are you insinuating NA is a liar when he said DC had a knock and was injured by any chance? Come on, "liar" is a totally inappropriate use of the word. If it were that, do you think NA would come out and say it, thereby giving the fans of every bloody team we play this season the chance to disturb the focus of one of our strikers ? Silly boy... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mattyd Posted 3 October, 2011 Share Posted 3 October, 2011 The Academy is a P & L activity. Even if players move we look to it as a revenue stream. This will change as players want to stay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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