West Ham United F.C. Under-23s and Academy


The Academy of West Ham United F.C. is recognised as one of the most successful in modern football, hence its nickname the Academy of Football.
The introduction of the FA's new Academy system in 1998 has placed even more emphasis on the developing of young homegrown players and today the youth system at West Ham is more important than it has ever been. With the influx of many foreign players in the Premier League during modern times, West Ham United has been regarded as one of the few remaining clubs in top flight to continue producing and playing homegrown English players.
The Under-23 team is the most senior of West Ham's youth squads. The Under-23 team is effectively the club's second-string side, but is limited to three outfield players and one goalkeeper over the age of 23 per game following the introduction of new regulations from the 2012–13 season. They play in Premier League 2 and also compete in the Checkatrade Trophy.

The Academy of Football

'The Academy of Football' , or just 'The Academy', is a nickname of West Ham United. The title pays homage to the success of the club in coaching talented young players. The title, originally attributed to the club by the press, has since been officially adopted by the club and is displayed in several prominent places around the stadium such as being printed beside the club crest on the artificial surface surrounding the pitch at Upton Park.
The original tribute intended to reference the entire culture of the club, in much the same way as the Liverpool "Boot Room". It was not solely reserved for the education of young players, but also for the development of a modern approach to football from the roots up, as inspired by the success of the Hungarian national team featuring Ferenc Puskás that had humiliated England 6–3, and the great Real Madrid side of the late 1950s that dominated the European Cup.

Academy history

The 'Academy of Football' term was first used in the early years of Ron Greenwood's reign as West Ham manager. Greenwood had inherited a young team of players from Ted Fenton and the club was noted for its reliance on home grown talent with Bobby Moore, Martin Peters, Geoff Hurst, John Lyall, Ronnie Boyce, John Sissons, Alan Sealey and Harry Redknapp all in the first team or periphery. Further foundations had been laid with stalwart Ken Brown at the back, Malcolm Musgrove on the left wing, and the addition of John "Budgie" Byrne up front.
The true heritage of this side, however, owed its pedigree to the practices put in place by the previous manager.
Fenton was praised as a forward thinking manager. He pushed for the establishment of "The Academy" that brought through a series of young players to augment a side that could not be improved with the limited finances available. Two of the signings he did manage to make were those of John Dick and Malcolm Allison. Other players of the day included John Bond, Dave Sexton, Jimmy Andrews and Frank O'Farrell and Tommy Moroney all part of an original 'Cafe Cassettari' club started by Fenton as a result of the restrictive budget.
Cassettari's Café sat opposite the Boleyn Ground, and Fenton organised a deal that saw meals and a warm welcome for the players of the club at a price the club could manage. It became a place for routine discussion of the team, and ideas and wisdom freely passed back and forth. The tradition of mentorship lasted long into the 1960s even after Fenton had moved on and saw future managers John Lyall and Harry Redknapp pass through.
Fenton introduced continental ideas to the team, revamping training methods and taking inspiration from higher ranked teams, and even inspiring some. Fenton had been impressed greatly by the all conquering Hungarians of the 1950s led by Ferenc Puskás and the Cassettari program and development of the academy were at the core. Ernie Gregory said "We'd usually eaten fish or chicken and toast before then, but Dr. Thomas advised us all to eat steak and rice two hours before kick-off. All the other clubs copied us after that". However, not all the changes were strictly down to Fenton, Musgrove attributed much of the training regime to Allison, going so far as to state that once the players were at the club they were pretty much Allisons property. As well as being a student of the game himself, Fenton encouraged all players to take coaching badges and it's notable that many of his former players went on to coaching and managing roles after they retired. The Academy also involved, beyond the routine training and development of the youth and squad, actual tactical discussions between the players.
At this time, three players who had come through the West Ham youth development system were seeing some success in the England squad; they were Bobby Moore who debuted in 1962, Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters.
In 1966, these players played a part in England's victory in the World Cup.
Moore was the most well-known of the three. He captained the England squad and was later named by Pelé as the "greatest" of all the defenders he had played against.
In the World Cup final against West Germany in which England won 4–2, Hurst scored the only hat-trick ever scored at a World Cup final match, and Peters scored the other goal. This gave rise to the West Ham supporters' partly tongue-in-cheek terrace chant:
I remember Wembley,

When West Ham beat West Germany.

Peters one and Geoffrey three,

And Bobby got his OBE!

A bronze statue of these three players holding the Jules Rimet Trophy aloft was erected in 2003 at the junction of Barking Road and Green Street close to Upton Park.
During the next thirty years West Ham's youth academy produced many professional players. Notable Academy "graduates" during this time include Frank Lampard Sr. and Trevor Brooking, who both featured in the club's 1975 FA Cup win with a team composed solely of English players; no club since has repeated this accomplishment.
Since 1973 the Academy has been managed by Tony Carr, himself a "graduate" but whose career was cut short by injury.
Paul Ince played his first game for West Ham in 1986, and went on to win more trophies than any other Academy "graduate", albeit with Manchester United.

Premier League era

In 1996, the reputation of the Academy began a fresh revival with the arrival of Rio Ferdinand and Frank Lampard Jnr. That year, the West Ham youth team reached the FA Youth Cup Final, losing to a Liverpool side inspired by Michael Owen. However, both Ferdinand and Lampard would see success in subsequent years.
In 1999, the West Ham youth team won the FA Youth Cup, beating Coventry City 9–0 on aggregate. The team featured Joe Cole and Michael Carrick. Ferdinand and Carrick played against Lampard and Cole when Manchester United met Chelsea at the 2008 UEFA Champions League Final.
Recent Academy "graduates" include Glen Johnson, Billy Mehmet, Freddy Eastwood, Anton Ferdinand, Elliott Ward, Mark Noble, Jack Collison and James Tomkins.

Relationship with West Ham United

The Academy is an important part of the club's identity and a regular source of players for the first team. When the club was relegated from the FA Premier League in 2003 the sale of young Academy stars arguably saved the club from financial disaster. It has been argued that if West Ham had kept all of their Academy "graduates" since Rio Ferdinand, they would currently be among the very top English teams.
With their promotion via the Championship Play-Offs in 2005 West Ham have returned to England's top league. Three Academy "graduates" had been key players in this achievement; Anton Ferdinand, Elliott Ward, and Mark Noble. In the 2007–08 season, manager Alan Curbishley handed three graduates, Jack Collison, James Tomkins and Freddie Sears, their debuts.
Gianfranco Zola, who previously worked with the Italy U-21's, stated his desire to continue the club's tradition of using homegrown talent. Noble, Tomkins and Collison all went on to play an important part as West Ham beat relegation to finish 9th in the 2008–09 season. Under him, Zavon Hines and Junior Stanislas have impressed after the August 2009 League Cup match against Millwall where they both scored in a 3–1 win.

West Ham as a 'selling club'

A case may be made that West Ham has been a 'selling club' in recent years, that is, a club that provides quality players to other clubs for profit but does not have the prestige or financial means to keep those players for the benefit of their own team. This reputation probably began with the sale of Rio Ferdinand to Leeds United in 2000. Since then, West Ham have sold six Academy "graduates" for transfer fees totalling over £50 million. This amount has traditionally been much greater than the club's own spending on players, and many of the players found success with financially stronger clubs such as Chelsea and Manchester United who are two of the English clubs capable of competing on a different level to most other teams.
Though not a club, the England national team has included various academy apprentices or graduates in recent years, including Rio Ferdinand, Michael Carrick, Frank Lampard, Joe Cole, Jermain Defoe and Glen Johnson, as well as John Terry who spent part of his development with the club.

Quotes

"The crowds at West Ham have never been rewarded by results but they keep turning up because of the good football they see. Other clubs will suffer from the old bugbear that results count more than anything. This has been the ruination of English soccer." – Ron Greenwood, West Ham manager 1961–1974.
"No way is it all down to me. It's very difficult to say why we've been so successful in youth terms; I suppose it's down to a number of factors but, most importantly, our recruitment area of east London and Essex is really fertile." – Tony Carr, director of Youth Development at West Ham 1973–2010, quoted in an interview published by The Daily Telegraph 14 June 2004.
"Why should we sell Rio Ferdinand? Are we a Premier League club or are we just a feeder club for bigger clubs? If we start selling players like Rio, where is the club going to go?" – Harry Redknapp, West Ham manager 1994–2001.
"The biggest single contributor to the current England national squad is not Manchester United, Arsenal, Liverpool or Chelsea, but the West Ham Youth Academy." – ITV Football article, 13 September 2004.

Reserve team history

The West Ham United Reserves Team was founded in 1899 as Thames Ironworks Reserves and they changed their name to West Ham Reserves in 1900. They joined London League Division One in the season 1899-00. In 2007–08 they were FA Premier Reserve League Southern Division runners-up on goal difference.

'A' team

Between 1948 and 1956 West Ham entered an 'A' team into the Eastern Counties League. In 1952 they also began playing in the Metropolitan League. After leaving the ECL they remained in the Metropolitan League, winning the League Cup in 1957–58 and the Professional Cup in 1959–60, 1966–67 and 1968–69. They left the league when it merged into the Metropolitan London League in 1971, and instead entered a youth team into the South East Counties League, which they won in 1984–85, 1995–96 and 1997–98, before leaving when the FA Academy system was set up in 1998.

Under-23 team

The West Ham United Reserves competed in the Premier Reserve League South until relegation from the Premier League. The side is now classed as a development squad coached by Dmitri Halajko and Steve Potts. Friendly games were usually played at Chadwell Heath and other clubs training grounds.
Since the 2012–13 season, the team have played in the Professional Development League for players under the age of 21 and a restricted number of over age players. Most home matches are played at Dagenham & Redbridge's Victoria Road ground, with three fixtures per season played at the London Stadium.

Current squad

Players who will qualify as U23s in season 2019–20 and who are outside the first team squad.
The West Ham Under-18s play in the U18 Premier League South. Home games are staged at Little Heath, Hainault Road in Romford, Essex. Tony Carr, a former West Ham player himself, was the youth academy director from 1973 to 2014. They have won the U-19 title twice in 1998–99 and 1999-00, when the Academy League was split into the U-17s and U-21s.

Current squad

Alongside West Ham's aforementioned representation in the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final, the club also produced Clyde Best, Ade Coker and Clive Charles through their academy - with the trio making Football League history, by becoming the first three black players to start a game in the competition. Coker second the second in the game against Tottenham Hotspur, on 1 April 1972, securing a 2–0 win for West Ham.

International capped players

PlayerPositionWest Ham appearancesWest Ham goalsInternational capsInternational goalsInternational representationClub debutManager
Bobby MooreDF647271082 EnglandAge 17 vs. Manchester United, First Division, 8 September 1958Ted Fenton
Geoff HurstST5032494924 EnglandAge 17 vs. Fulham, Southern Professional Floodlit Cup, 15 December 1958Ted Fenton
Martin PetersMF3641006720 EnglandAge 18 vs. Cardiff City, First Division, 20 April 1962Ron Greenwood
Trevor BrookingMF643102475 EnglandAge 18 vs. Burnley, First Division, 29 August 1967Ron Greenwood
Frank Lampard SeniorDF6702220 EnglandAge 19 vs. Manchester City, First Division, 18 November 1967Ron Greenwood
Clyde BestST2215821 BermudaAge 18 vs. Arsenal, First Division, 25 August 1969Ron Greenwood
Ade CokerST11353 United StatesAge 17 vs. Crystal Palace, First Division, 30 October 1971Ron Greenwood
Tony CotteeST33614670 EnglandAge 18 vs. Tottenham Hotspur, First Division, 1 January 1983John Lyall
Paul InceMF9512532 EnglandAge 19 vs. Chelsea, Full Members' Cup, 25 November 1986John Lyall
Frank LampardMF1873810629 EnglandAge 17 vs. Coventry City, Premier League, 31 January 1996Harry Redknapp
Rio FerdinandDF1582813 EnglandAge 17 vs. Sheffield Wednesday, Premier League, 5 May 1996Harry Redknapp
Joe ColeMF187185610 EnglandAge 17 vs. Swansea City, FA Cup, 2 January 1999Harry Redknapp
Michael CarrickMF1596340 EnglandAge 17 vs. Jokerit, Intertoto Cup, 2 January 1999Harry Redknapp

First team graduates since 2000

Since the turn of the century, every permanent first team manager has enabled a player from West Ham's youth teams to represent the first team. The following table shows every player to have made at least one first team appearance in all competitions. Players highlighted in green are still contracted to West Ham.
PlayerPositionWest Ham appearancesWest Ham goalsCurrent clubBornInternational honoursDebutManager
Shaun BryneDF30Retired Taplow Ireland U21Age 18 vs. Newcastle United, Premier League, 3 January 2000Harry Redknapp
Jermain DefoeST10541 Rangers Beckton EnglandAge 17 vs. Walsall, League Cup, 19 September 2000Harry Redknapp
Grant McCannMF40 Hull City Belfast Northern IrelandAge 21 vs. Middlesbrough, Premier League, 19 May 2001Glenn Roeder
Richard GarciaFW220Retired Perth AustraliaAge 20 vs. Reading, League Cup, 11 September 2001Glenn Roeder
Glen JohnsonDF160Retired Greenwich EnglandAge 18 vs. Charlton Athletic, Premier League, 22 January 2003Glenn Roeder
Anton FerdinandDF1635Free agent Peckham England U21Age 18 vs. Preston North End, Championship, 9 August 2003Glenn Roeder
Chris CohenMF220Retired NorwichAge 16 vs. Sunderland, Championship, 13 December 2003Alan Pardew
Trent McClenahanMF30 Rockdale City Suns Chipping Norton Australia U23Age 19 vs. Crewe Alexandra, Championship, 21 August 2004Alan Pardew
Mark NobleMF49760 West Ham United Canning Town England U21Age 17 vs. Southend United, League Cup, 24 August 2004Alan Pardew
Elliott WardDF210 Chelmsford City HarrowAge 19 vs. Southend United, League Cup, 24 August 2004Alan Pardew
Hogan EphraimFW10Free agent Archway England U19Age 17 vs. Sheffield Wednesday, League Cup, 20 September 2005Alan Pardew
Tony StokesFW10 Grays Athletic LondonAge 18 vs. Sheffield Wednesday, League Cup, 20 September 2005Alan Pardew
Kyel ReidFW91Free agent DeptfordAge 18 vs. West Bromwich Albion, Premier League, 1 May 2006Alan Pardew
Jack CollisonMF12114 Atlanta United Watford WalesAge 19 vs. Arsenal, Premier League, 1 January 2008Alan Curbishley
Freddie SearsFW583 Ipswich Town Hornchurch England U21Age 18 vs. Blackburn Rovers, Premier League, 15 March 2008Alan Curbishley
James TomkinsDF24311 Crystal Palace Basildon Great BritainAge 18 vs. Everton, Premier League, 22 March 2008Alan Curbishley
Zavon HinesFW313 West Ham United Kingston England U21Age 19 vs. Macclesfield Town, League Cup, 27 August 2008Alan Curbishley
Junior StanislasFW478 AFC Bournemouth Kidbrooke England U21Age 19 vs. West Bromwich Albion, Premier League, 16 March 2009Gianfranco Zola
Josh PayneMF30Free agent Basingstoke England CAge 18 vs. Blackburn Rovers, Premier League, 21 March 2009Gianfranco Zola
Bondz N'GalaDF10Free agent Forest GateAge 20 vs. Bolton Wanderers, League Cup, 22 September 2009Gianfranco Zola
Anthony EdgarMF20 Herne Bay NewhamAge 19 vs. Arsenal, FA Cup, 3 January 2010Gianfranco Zola
Jordan SpenceDF100Free agent Woodford England U21Age 19 vs. Manchester City, FA Cup, 9 May 2010Gianfranco Zola
Marek ŠtěchGK30 Luton Town Prague Czech RepublicAge 20 vs. Oxford United, League Cup, 24 August 2010Avram Grant
Callum McNaughtonDF10Retired HarlowAge 19 vs. Aldershot Town, League Cup, 24 August 2011Sam Allardyce
Dan PottsDF130 Luton Town Barking England U20Age 17 vs. Barnsley, Championship, 17 December 2011Sam Allardyce
Robert HallFW70 Oxford United Aylesbury England U19Age 18 vs. Derby County, Championship, 31 December 2011Sam Allardyce
Matthias FanimoMF30 Mladost Doboj Kakanj Lambeth England U18Age 18 vs. Crewe Alexandra, League Cup, 28 August 2012Sam Allardyce
George MoncurMF20 Luton Town Swindon England U18Age 19 vs. Crewe Alexandra, League Cup, 28 August 2012Sam Allardyce
Dylan TombidesST10 Perth Australia U23Age 18 vs. Wigan Athletic, League Cup, 25 September 2012Sam Allardyce
Elliot LeeST71 Luton Town DurhamAge 18 vs. Manchester United, FA Cup, 16 January 2013Sam Allardyce
Leo ChambersDF30Free agent Brixton England U19Age 18 vs. Cheltenham Town, League Cup, 27 August 2013Sam Allardyce
Reece BurkeDF151 Hull City Newham England U20Age 17 vs. Nottingham Forest, FA Cup, 5 January 2014Sam Allardyce
Callum DriverDF10 Leatherhead SidcupAge 21 vs. Nottingham Forest, FA Cup, 5 January 2014Sam Allardyce
Sebastian LletgetMF10 LA Galaxy San Francisco United StatesAge 20 vs. Nottingham Forest, FA Cup, 5 January 2014Sam Allardyce
Blair TurgottMF10 Östersunds Bromley England U19Age 19 vs. Nottingham Forest, FA Cup, 5 January 2014Sam Allardyce
Josh CullenMF90 Charlton Athletic Westcliff-on-Sea IrelandAge 19 vs. Lusitanos, Europa League, 2 July 2015Slaven Bilić
Reece OxfordDF170 Augsburg Edmonton England U20Age 16 vs. Lusitanos, Europa League, 2 July 2015Slaven Bilić
Lewis PageDF30 Charlton Athletic EnfieldAge 19 vs. Lusitanos, Europa League, 2 July 2015Slaven Bilić
Djair Parfitt-WilliamsST20 Rudar Velenje HamiltonAge 18 vs. Lusitanos, Europa League, 2 July 2015Slaven Bilić
Amos NashaMF10 East Thurrock United FinchleyAge 19 vs. Lusitanos, Europa League, 9 July 2015Slaven Bilić
Jordan BrownFW10 Cavalry Brent England U17Age 18 vs. Astra Giurgiu, Europa League, 6 August 2015Slaven Bilić
Kyle KnoyleDF10 Cambridge United Newham England U18Age 18 vs. Astra Giurgiu, Europa League, 6 August 2015Slaven Bilić
Marcus BrowneMF10 Middlesbrough LondonAge 18 vs. Astra Giurgiu, Europa League, 18 August 2016Slaven Bilić
Declan RiceMF1032 West Ham United Kingston upon Thames EnglandAge 18 vs. Burnley, Premier League, 21 May 2017Slaven Bilić
Conor CoventryMF20 West Ham United Waltham Forest Ireland U21Age 18 vs. Macclesfield Town, League Cup, 26 August 2018Manuel Pellegrini
Grady DianganaMF212 West Bromwich Albion Democratic Republic of Congo England U21Age 20 vs. Macclesfield Town, League Cup, 26 August 2018Manuel Pellegrini
Joe PowellMF10 Burton Albion Canning TownAge 19 vs. Macclesfield Town, League Cup, 26 August 2018Manuel Pellegrini
Ben JohnsonDF10 West Ham United Waltham ForestAge 19 vs. Manchester City, Premier League, 27 February 2019Manuel Pellegrini
Jeremy NgakiaDF50Free agent DeptfordAge 19 vs. Liverpool, Premier League, 29 January 2020David Moyes

Other players

These players either trained at the Academy but never played for West Ham first team or trained at multiple clubs in their youth.
International