Academy column: Bennison legacy and Kent loan

I would like to start this week’s Academy column by paying tribute to John Bennison. Although I didn’t know John personally, his legacy with youth football lives on at the club. It’s a regret of mine that I didn’t get a chance to meet him but his wonderful legacy is a very proud one with regards to the development of young players, and it’s not only a huge loss to the club but for his family as well. Our thoughts go out to his family.

John, of course, worked closely with Steve Heighway, who returned to the Academy last year. Steve is an incredible guy. He is still unbelievably passionate about this club and more importantly about the development of the young players. He inspires us each and every day he comes in to Kirkby and he has such a wealth of knowledge. He works with our U15 and U16 age group in conjunction with Des Maher and Barry Lewtas. He is a wonderful mentor to both players and coaches at the Academy. I still learn lots from him on a daily basis and it’s an absolute privilege to have him back and involved with us.

Our young winger Ryan Kent has joined Coventry City on loan until January and this will be of great benefit to him. A number of clubs were very keen on taking Ryan, but we feel he will be playing at a very good level of League One football at a good club who will look after him. He is an exciting talent who did well with the first team during pre-season and getting this experience will only benefit him in the long-term.

We now have 14 players out on loan and I would like to explain why we feel this is the right road to take for our young players. With regards to the strategy around the loan system you have to go back to the last 15 to 20 years to see how football has evolved and changed in this country. A long time ago it was usual to see the next step to playing in the youth team was the reserve team, who were filled with men and seasoned professionals.

Steve McManaman, who coaches with us here at the Academy, will recall stories of playing in the Liverpool reserve team alongside the likes of Jan Molby. That was my experience as a player and it was the same for a lot of players in my generation, playing in a senior environment with the reserves. The evolution within football now has meant that doesn’t happen anymore for a variety of reasons, so what we are left with now is the next step after the U18s is the U21s which is basically another layer of youth-team football on top of another one.

There comes a point in the Academy where we as coaches can no longer give the players what they need. I can’t give them possibly the three points that mean everything to them, I can’t give them a crowd of 5,000 to 10,000 people that are baying for blood, I can’t give them the manager who is under pressure for a result and I can’t give them the teammate who is an experienced pro that will help and encourage them on the pitch. My job as Academy director is to always try to provide the players with the appropriate changes at the appropriate times.

At this moment in time our U18s team is pretty much an U17s side while the U21s is an U19 team. This means that a lot of very young players are getting that early chance to play against players a lot older than they are, and while it is a big ask for them, that is an invaluable experience. I accept that the coaches here at the Academy might have to take a hit for the club because the players they are selecting are having to make a big step up, and in terms of results they might suffer. The bigger picture though is this: Jordan [Rossiter] was playing for me in the U21s side a few years ago as a 16-year-old and this season he has made his first appearance in the Barclays Premier League.

The 14 players we have out on loan are all starting their journey into senior football and we are hoping a couple of them can have the impact Jordon Ibe did by going out, getting experience and coming back straight into the first team. Jordan Rossiter hasn’t needed that loan at the moment and maybe he never will, the same with Jon Flanagan who came straight through the Academy to do very well in the first team, and he will do that again when he is back in action after injury. For the majority of the boys they need that extra bit of experience to enable them to play for the first team at Anfield in the future.

It was great to see Jordan [Rossiter] and Sheyi Ojo play a major role in helping England U19s to a 3-2 win over Germany last week. Sheyi got one of the goals and both players did the Academy and the club proud. Jordan Williams was involved with the full Wales squad and was on the bench with Danny Ward for both matches, and that was a fantastic experience for both of the lads. I think we are very lucky to have boys representing their countries over a number of nations, but of course going forward you have to be successful for your club before you can be selected for your country and they know that.