Southampton F.C. B team and Academy

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Coordinates: 50°53′17″N 1°27′38″W / 50.888035°N 1.460478°W / 50.888035; -1.460478 Southampton F.C. B team and Academy or Saints B and Academy is the youth organisation run by Southampton F.C. to encourage and develop young footballers in the south of England. Renowned players including Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott, and Alan Shearer began their careers at this academy. The team is made up of under-23 and academy players, is effectively Southampton'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.[1] They play in Premier League 2, Division 2. The team also competes in the EFL Trophy, Premier League International Cup, Premier League Cup and the Hampshire Senior Cup. The under-18 players among other younger age groups make up the Academy team and play in the Premier League U18 First Division, South, Premier League U18 Cup and the FA Youth Cup.

Home fixtures are contested at A.F.C. Totton's Testwood Stadium with some fixtures being held at St. Mary's. Some games are played at the club's training facilities at Staplewood in Long Lane, Marchwood, Southampton if required. Since September 2020, the B team has been managed by David Horseman, whole since August 2021, the Under 18s have been managed by Carl Martin.

Age categories[]

  • B team (professionals)
  • Under 18
  • Under 16
  • Under 15
  • Under 14
  • Under 13
  • Under 12
  • Under 11
  • Under 10
  • Under 9
  • Under 8

International players[]

Amongst the players who passed through the Saints Academy and went on to represent their country since the turn of the Millennium are:

In the past, prior to the establishment of the academy, the Southampton youth system has produced other international players, such as Terry Paine, Martin Chivers, Steve Williams, Mick Channon, Matthew Le Tissier, Kevin Phillips and Alan Shearer.

Four former Saints academy players featured in the England Under-21 match against Montenegro on 7 September 2007: Martin Cranie and Theo Walcott both started (with Walcott setting up the second goal) whilst Dexter Blackstock and Andrew Surman came on as second-half substitutes, with Surman scoring the final goal in a 3–0 victory, tapping the ball home in stoppage time from a knock-down by Blackstock.[2][3]

In England's international friendly against Denmark on 5 March 2014, three graduates of the Southampton F.C. Academy appeared as second-half substitutes: Luke Shaw (making his debut), Adam Lallana and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain.

Present structure[]

Matt Hale is the current Academy Director, stepping up from his role as Academy Manager in July 2019. He was replaced as academy manager by his assistant Ed Vahid at the same time. Robin Nicholls is the current assistant Academy Manager. The current academy set up has teams at all age groups from Under 8s all the way through to the professional B team, employing large number of coaches and educational staff. Iain Brunnschweiler is the current Coach Development Manager for the academy. Academy players from the age of 16 up until the age of 18 are often looked after by Host Families within the local area. These families are organised and monitored by Family Liaison Officer Ian Herding.

Head Scout Martyn Glover oversees academy recruitment alongside Director of Football operations Matt Crocker, who was previously Academy Manager, while Rod Ruddick, Jim Flood, Wayne Stephens and Vince Bartram are all involved in youth recruitment for the academy along with the club scouting team.

The aim of the Southampton academy is to "...produce Premiership class players..."[4]

Currently, Southampton's academy set-up is one of the best in the country and they have regularly reached the latter stages of the FA Youth Cup, as well as being successful in the FA Premier Academy League championship. In the 2010–2011 season the U18s were only just "...Pipped to the Title..." by one point on the last day of the season of the Group A league. Southampton had to win and Fulham had to draw or lose for Southampton to come top. After winning 1–3 away to Coventry City the U18s were dismayed to discover Fulham had come back from being 0–3 down versus Leicester City to win 5–3.

The academy has joined up with local college Sparsholt College to try to give those footballers who have missed out on a scholarship the opportunity to remain in the game and train and play matches with the Southampton Academy.[5]

In May 2013, Andre Villas-Boas, manager of Tottenham Hotspur praised the Southampton Academy for its ability to produce star players, describing it as "a great school of development" and comparing it to Sporting Lisbon.[6]

In April 2015, a Southampton U21 side won the U21 Premier League Cup, defeating a Blackburn Rovers U21 side in the two-legged final at St Mary's Stadium in front of more than 12,000 fans. Goals from Ryan Seager and Sam Gallagher cancelled out a Matt Targett own goal to give Southampton a 2–1 victory after extra time to win the second edition of the cup.[7]

In September 2020, Southampton revamped their Under-23s programme to 'enhance the pathway into the first team for its younger players.' A 'structure and philosophical overhaul' saw the Under-23s side become a B team. The new B team will mirror the training programmes, coaching and style of play of the first team. Training and fixtures, where possible, will also be organised so it does not clash with the first team so the first team manager and coaches can watch the side train or play and also take part in coaching sessions. The side will still continue to participate in the same competitions as before the revamp.[8]

Under new club Director of Football Matt Crocker, individual player coaches have been brought into to try and improve players coming through the academy. Lee Skyrme was appointed B team individual player coach in 2021, while Mikey Harris was appointed in the same role for the U18s in the same year.[9]

B team squad[]

Southampton B team
FC Southampton.svg
Full nameSouthampton Football Club B team
Nickname(s)The Saints
GroundTestwood Stadium, Totton, Southampton
ManagerDavid Horseman (B team)
LeaguePremier League 2, Division 2
2020–21Premier League 2, Division 1, 13th (relegated)
WebsiteClub website

Players (excluding scholars) who will qualify as B team players in season 2021–22 (i.e. born on or after 1 January 1998) and who are outside the first team squad.

As of 17 August 2021[10]
  • Squad numbers represent numbers given to players for first team and EFL Trophy matches only.
  • ± Denotes a player on an 'extended scholarship'.
  • * Denotes a player who is overage (born before 1 January 1998) and outside of the first team squad.

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
36 DF England ENG Olly Lancashire *
38 DF England ENG Dynel Simeu
42 DF England ENG Oludare Olufunwa
46 MF Australia AUS Caleb Watts
47 GK England ENG Ollie Wright
48 MF England ENG Kegs Chauke
49 MF England ENG Ramello Mitchell
51 GK England ENG Jack Bycroft
52 FW England ENG Sam Bellis
No. Pos. Nation Player
53 FW Belgium BEL Kazeem Olaigbe
55 MF England ENG Jack Turner
56 DF England ENG Zuriel Otseh-Taiwo
57 FW England ENG Jayden Smith
58 DF England ENG Will Tizzard
59 MF England ENG Ethan Burnett
62 MF England ENG Teddy Davey ±
64 DF England ENG Sam Bailey ±

On loan[]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
54 GK England ENG Matthew Hall (on loan at Melksham Town until January 2022)
63 FW England ENG Benni Smales-Braithwaite (on loan at Gloucester City until January 2022)
— DF England ENG Kayne Ramsay (on loan at Crewe Alexandra until end of season)
No. Pos. Nation Player
— DF England ENG Jake Vokins (on loan at Ross County until end of season)
— MF Republic of Ireland IRL Will Ferry (on loan at Crawley Town until end of season)
— FW England ENG Dan Nlundulu (on loan at Lincoln City until end of season)

B team & U23 Honours[]

Leagues[]

Cups[]

  • U21 Premier League Cup
    • Winners: 2014–15
  • Southampton Senior Cup
    • Winners: 2017–18
  • South Shields International Tournament
    • Winners: 2018–19

Under-18 squad[]

Southampton Under-18s
FC Southampton.svg
Full nameSouthampton Football Club (Under-18s)
Nickname(s)The Saints
GroundStaplewood Campus, Long Lane, Marchwood, Southampton
ManagerCarl Martin (Under-18s)
LeaguePremier U18 First Division, South
Premier U18 First Division, South, 13th
WebsiteClub website
As of 3 July 2021[11]

Academy 2nd Years 2021–22[]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK Wales WAL Eddie Beach (DoB 14.11.2003)
— GK Sweden SWE Gustav Lillienberg (DoB 04.04.2004)
61 DF England ENG Lewis Payne (DoB 30.05.2004)
67 DF Northern Ireland NIR Matthew Carson (DoB 29.04.2004)
70 DF France FRA Leon Pambou * (DoB 25.01.2004)
— DF Spain ESP Jeremi Rodriguez * (DoB 01.10.2003)
— MF Serbia SRB Goran Babić * (DoB 07.10.2003)
No. Pos. Nation Player
— MF England ENG Diamond Edwards * (DoB 27.12.2003)
— MF England ENG Kaya Tshaka (DoB 09.06.2004)
50 MF England ENG Ryan Finnigan * (DoB 23.09.2003)
69 MF England ENG Fedel Ross-Lang * (DoB 05.10.2003)
60 FW England ENG Luke Pearce * (DoB 08.06.2004)
— FW England ENG Harvey Woods (DoB 30.05.2004)

Academy 1st Years 2021–22[]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK United Arab Emirates UAE Adli Mohamed (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
— DF England ENG Sonnie Davis (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
68 DF England ENG Josh Lett (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
72 DF England ENG Jeremiah Hewlett (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
65 MF England ENG Kamari Doyle (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
66 MF England ENG Dominic Ballard (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
No. Pos. Nation Player
71 MF England ENG Cameron Bragg (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
— MF England ENG Ryan Chavez-Munoz (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
— MF England ENG Joshua Squires (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
— MF England ENG Rylee Wright (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
— FW England ENG Tommy-Lee Higgs (DoB xx.xx.xxxx)
  • * = Professional contracts

U18 Honours[]

Leagues[]

Cups[]

Staff[]

Academy Leads
  • Academy Director: Matt Hale
  • Academy Manager: Ed Vahid
  • Assistant Academy Manager: Robin Nicholls
  • Head of Academy Medical Services: Tom Sturdy
  • Coach Development Manager: Iain Brunnschweiler
B team / Under-18 management
  • B team Coach: David Horseman
  • B team Individual Player Coach: Lee Skyrme
  • U18 Coach: Carl Martin
  • U18 Individual Player Coach: Mikey Harris
  • Development Coach: Louis Carey
  • Development Goalkeeping Coach: Ryan Flood
  • Academy Liaison Officer: Ian Herding

Academy graduates (2000–present)[]

A number of players from the Southampton F.C. Academy have gone on to have careers in professional football, whether at Southampton or at other clubs. The following is a list of players who have made their Southampton first team debuts since the turn of the Millennium. Players who have represented Southampton in the Leasing.com Trophy, and no other competition, are not included in this list. Academy graduates who still play for Southampton, including those that are currently out on loan to other clubs, are highlighted in green. Where players have made their debut in the same fixture, they are sorted alphabetically by surname.

As of 21 September 2021
Player Position Southampton Appearances Southampton Goals Current Club Born International Honours Debut Manager
Ryan Ashford DF 1 0 Retired England Honiton Age 18 vs. Mansfield Town, Worthington Cup, 26 September 2000 Glenn Hoddle
Scott McDonald FW 3 0 Free Agent Australia Melbourne Australia Australia Age 18 vs. Brighton & Hove Albion, Worthington Cup, 11 September 2001 Stuart Gray
Chris Baird DF 79 3 Retired Northern Ireland Rasharkin Northern Ireland Northern Ireland Age 21 vs. Aston Villa, FA Barclaycard Premiership, 22 March 2003 Gordon Strachan
Kevin Phillips FW 73 26 Retired England Hitchin England England Age 30 vs. Leicester City, FA Barclaycard Premiership, 16 August 2003
Léandre Griffit MF 8 2 Retired France Maubeuge France France U21 Age 19 vs. Blackburn Rovers, FA Barclaycard Premiership, 25 October 2003
Yoann Folly MF 18 0 Retired France Paris Togo Togo Age 18 vs. Tottenham Hotspur, FA Barclaycard Premiership, 27 March 2004 Paul Sturrock
Martin Cranie DF 25 0 Free Agent England Yeovil England England U21 Age 17 vs. Chelsea, FA Barclaycard Premiership, 1 May 2004
Alan Blayney GK 4 0 Retired Northern Ireland Belfast Northern Ireland Northern Ireland Age 22 vs. Newcastle United, FA Barclaycard Premiership, 12 May 2004
Leon Best FW 17 4 Retired England Nottingham Republic of Ireland Republic of Ireland Age 18 vs. Newcastle United, FA Barclays Premiership, 19 September 2004 Steve Wigley
Dexter Blackstock FW 36 9 Retired England Oxford Antigua and Barbuda Antigua and Barbuda Age 18 vs. Everton, FA Barclays Premiership, 16 October 2004
Theo Walcott MF/FW 49 8 England Southampton England Stanmore England England Age 16 vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 6 August 2005 Harry Redknapp
Dennis Wise DF/MF 12 1 Retired England Kensington England England Age 38 vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 6 August 2005
Nathan Dyer MF 66 3 Retired England Trowbridge Age 17 vs. Southend United, Carling Cup, 22 August 2005
David McGoldrick FW 75 15 England Sheffield United England Nottingham Republic of Ireland Republic of Ireland Age 17 vs. Mansfield Town, Carling Cup, 20 September 2005
Matt Mills DF 6 0 Retired England Swindon England England U19 Age 19 vs. Watford, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 26 December 2005 Dave Bassett &
Dennis Wise
Bartosz Białkowski GK 42 0 England Millwall Poland Braniewo Poland Poland Age 18 vs. Crystal Palace, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 25 January 2006 George Burley
Andrew Surman MF 146 18 Retired South Africa Johannesburg England England U21 Age 19 vs. Crystal Palace, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 25 January 2006
Simon Gillett MF 39 0 Retired England Oxford Age 20 vs. Leicester City, FA Cup, 28 January 2006
Gareth Bale DF/MF 45 5 Spain Real Madrid Wales Cardiff Wales Wales Age 16 vs. Millwall, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 17 April 2006
Adam Lallana MF 265 60 England Brighton & Hove Albion England St Albans England England Age 18 vs. Yeovil Town, Carling Cup, 23 August 2006
Cédric Baseya FW 1 0 Retired France Brétigny-sur-Orge Democratic Republic of the Congo DR Congo U20 Age 20 vs. Ipswich Town, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 1 March 2008 Nigel Pearson
Michael Poke GK 4 0 Retired England Staines Age 22 vs. Wolverhampton Wanderers, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 4 March 2008
Lloyd James MF 85 2 England Bath City England Bristol Wales Wales U21 Age 20 vs. Cardiff City, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 9 August 2008 Jan Poortvliet
Jake Thomson MF 16 0 England Horndean England Southsea Trinidad and Tobago Trinidad and Tobago Age 19 vs. Cardiff City, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 9 August 2008
Jamie White FW 3 0 Retired England Southampton Age 18 vs. Derby County, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 23 August 2008
Joseph Mills DF 36 0 England Northampton Town England Swindon England England U18 Age 18 vs. Birmingham City, Carling Cup, 26 August 2008
Olly Lancashire DF 17 0 England Southampton England Hook Age 19 vs. Queens Park Rangers, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 14 September 2008
Matt Paterson FW 22 2 England Gosport Borough Scotland Dunfermline Scotland Scotland U19 Age 18 vs. Norwich City, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 30 September 2008
Oscar Gobern MF 25 2 England Havant & Waterlooville England Birmingham England England U19 Age 17 vs. Preston North End, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 1 November 2008
Kayne McLaggon FW 8 1 Wales Barry Town United Wales Barry Wales Wales C Age 18 vs. Plymouth Argyle, Coca-Cola Football Championship, 26 December 2008
Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain MF 42 10 England Liverpool England Portsmouth England England Age 16 vs. Huddersfield Town, Coca-Cola Football League One, 2 March 2010 Alan Pardew
Callum McNish MF 1 0 England North Leigh England Oxford Age 17 vs. Carlisle United, Coca-Cola Football League One, 24 April 2010
Aaron Martin DF 29 2 England Port Vale Isle of Wight Newport, IOW Age 20 vs. Gillingham, Coca-Cola Football League One, 1 May 2010
Sam Hoskins FW 5 0 England Northampton Town England Dorchester Age 18 vs. Swindon Town, Carling Cup, 30 August 2011 Dean Wilkins
Ben Reeves DF/MF 13 1 England Gillingham England Verwood Northern Ireland Northern Ireland Age 19 vs. Preston North End, Carling Cup, 21 September 2011 Nigel Adkins
James Ward-Prowse MF 329 34 England Southampton England Portsmouth England England Age 16 vs. Crystal Palace, Carling Cup, 25 October 2011
Ryan Doble FW 1 0 Retired Wales Blaenavon Wales Wales U21 Age 20 vs. Coventry City, FA Cup, 7 January 2012
Jack Stephens DF 139 6 England Southampton England Torpoint England England U21 Age 17 vs. Coventry City, FA Cup, 7 January 2012
Luke Shaw DF 67 0 England Manchester United England Kingston upon Thames England England Age 16 vs. Millwall, FA Cup, 28 January 2012
Calum Chambers DF 25 0 England Arsenal England Petersfield England England Age 17 vs. Stevenage, Capital One Cup, 28 August 2012
Andy Robinson MF 1 0 England Weymouth England Bournemouth Age 19 vs. Sheffield Wednesday, Capital One Cup, 25 September 2012
Lloyd Isgrove MF 8 0 England Bolton Wanderers England Yeovil Wales Wales Age 19 vs. Leeds United, Capital One Cup, 30 October 2012
Harrison Reed MF 30 0 England Fulham England Worthing England England U20 Age 18 vs. Barnsley, Capital One Cup, 27 August 2013 Mauricio Pochettino
Omar Rowe MF 2 0 England Hayes & Yeading England Hackney Age 18 vs. Barnsley, Capital One Cup, 27 August 2013
Jake Sinclair FW 1 0 England Wimborne Town England Bath Age 18 vs. Barnsley, Capital One Cup, 27 August 2013
Sam Gallagher FW 26 2 England Blackburn Rovers England Camberley England England U20 Age 18 vs. Sunderland, Capital One Cup, 6 November 2013
Sam McQueen DF/MF 29 0 England Southampton England Southampton England England U21 Age 19 vs. Sunderland, FA Cup, 15 February 2014
Matt Targett DF 63 1 England Aston Villa England Eastleigh England England U21 Age 18 vs. Millwall, Capital One Cup, 26 August 2014 Ronald Koeman
Jake Hesketh MF 4 1 England Eastleigh England Stockport Age 18 vs. Manchester United, Premier League, 8 December 2014
Dominic Gape MF 1 0 England Wycombe Wanderers England Burton Bradstock Age 20 vs. Everton, Premier League, 20 December 2014
Jason McCarthy DF 1 0 England Wycombe Wanderers England Southampton Age 19 vs. Crystal Palace, Premier League, 26 December 2014
Ryan Seager FW 2 0 England Hungerford Town England Yeovil England England U20 call-up Age 18 vs. Crystal Palace, FA Cup, 24 January 2015
Olufela Olomola FW 1 0 England Hartlepool United England London Age 19 vs. Sunderland, EFL Cup, 26 October 2016 Claude Puel
Josh Sims MF/FW 27 0 Free Agent England Yeovil England England U20 Age 19 vs. Everton, Premier League, 27 November 2016
Harry Lewis GK 3 0 England Southampton England Shrewsbury England England U18 Age 19 vs. Norwich City, FA Cup, 7 January 2017
Michael Obafemi FW 39 5 Wales Swansea City Republic of Ireland Dublin Republic of Ireland Republic of Ireland Age 17 vs. Tottenham Hotspur, Premier League, 21 January 2018 Mauricio Pellegrino
Danny Ings FW 100 46 England Aston Villa England Winchester England England Age 26 vs. Burnley, Premier League, 12 August 2018 Mark Hughes
Yan Valery DF 42 2 England Southampton France Champigny-sur-Marne France France U18 Age 19 vs. Leicester City, Carabao Cup, 27 November 2018
Tyreke Johnson MF 3 0 England Woking England Trowbridge Age 20 vs. Arsenal, Premier League, 16 December 2018 Ralph Hasenhüttl
Kayne Ramsay DF 4 0 England Southampton
(on loan at England Crewe Alexandra)		 England Hackney Age 18 vs. Manchester City, Premier League, 30 December 2018
Marcus Barnes FW 1 0 Free Agent England Reading Age 22 vs. Derby County, FA Cup, 5 January 2019
Callum Slattery MF 5 0 Scotland Motherwell England Kidlington England England U20 Age 19 vs. Derby County, FA Cup, 5 January 2019
Jake Vokins DF 5 1 England Southampton
(on loan at Scotland Ross County)		 England Oxford England England U19 Age 19 vs. Manchester City, Carabao Cup, 29 October 2019
Will Smallbone MF 13 1 England Southampton England Basingstoke Republic of Ireland Republic of Ireland U21 Age 19 vs. Huddersfield Town, FA Cup, 4 January 2020
Nathan Tella MF/FW 26 2 England Southampton England Stevenage Age 20 vs. Norwich City, Premier League, 19 June 2020
Dan Nlundulu FW 16 1 England Southampton
(on loan at England Lincoln City)		 France England England U16 Age 21 vs. Everton, Premier League, 25 October 2020
Kegs Chauke MF 1 0 England Southampton South Africa Pretoria England England U18 call-up Age 18 vs. Shrewsbury Town, FA Cup, 19 January 2021
Ryan Finnigan MF 1 0 England Southampton England Age 17 vs. Shrewsbury Town, FA Cup, 19 January 2021
Alex Jankewitz MF 3 0 Switzerland Young Boys Switzerland Vevey Switzerland Switzerland U21 Age 19 vs. Shrewsbury Town, FA Cup, 19 January 2021
Caleb Watts MF 4 0 England Southampton England Australia Australia U23 Age 19 vs. Shrewsbury Town, FA Cup, 19 January 2021
Allan Tchaptchet DF 1 0 Free Agent France Besançon France France U16 Age 19 vs. Manchester United, Premier League, 2 February 2021

References[]

  1. ^ "Barclays U21 Premier League: Competition Format explained". premierleague.com. Retrieved 24 September 2013.
  2. ^ "Montenegro U21 0-3 England U21". bbc.co.uk. 7 September 2007. Retrieved 8 September 2007.
  3. ^ "Full Monte for U21s". thefa.com. 7 September 2007. Archived from the original on 17 February 2008. Retrieved 8 September 2007.
  4. ^ Introduction to the Southampton Academy Archived 28 August 2016 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ^ "Saints Programme". Southampton FC. 24 April 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  6. ^ "Andre Villas-Boas: Tottenham boss praises Southampton's academy". BBC Sport. 4 May 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2013.
  7. ^ "Gallagher wonder strike seals U21 PL Cup win for Southampton". Premier League. 21 April 2015. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
  8. ^ "Saints revamp Under-23s programme". Southampton FC. 7 September 2020. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Pompey academy manager candidate opts to join Saints instead". Southern Daily Echo. 24 March 2021. Retrieved 23 May 2021.
  10. ^ "Saints Under-23". Southampton F.C. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  11. ^ "Saints Under-18". Southampton F.C. Retrieved 25 August 2020.

External links[]

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