STFC Transfer Rumours

[fittons_coaching_badge]

The scouting system went with Ken Ryder. 

[BenTheRed]

A friend of mine has a young boy ( who has already been picked up by Reading. He reckons no Swindon scouts are to be seen at most local games.

Hope this changes with KevMac - bringing on youngsters is essential for clubs of our size

There isn't much incentive these days for scouting young players and developing them

If it were up to me id have a very basic setup from 5-15 year old and invest most money on 16-18 bringing in drop outs from prem teams hoping to pick up a few gems.

To me thats how we would get the most value out of a youth system

[thepeoplesgame]

Of all the players brought in and sent packing again by di Canio, Bostock was the one that we should have kept and nurtured and used.  It may well be that he didn't fit comfortably in the 442 shape, but from a forward position in central midfield he was Beckham-esque in his ability to spread the ball around accurately.  If he is still around, I would get him back in immediately...sadly I dont think he would come again.

It always interested me that although Paolo didn't play Bostock much, he was always very protective of him, positive in his comments about him (apart from his fitness at the start of his second loan spell) and wanted to keep him at the club. He clearly saw he was a good player who would serve us well in the long term; one that perhaps couldn't be fitted into our regular system but one that in an ideal world he wanted to have available for matches where he felt he needed someone in the position you describe. Obviously when the money dried up keeping such players around for specific purposes became impossible.

I would like to see him back, although it will depend on what shape and style of play MacDonald wishes to impose upon the first team. Does anyone know anything about his thinking in this regard?

[ronnie21]

A friend of mine has a young boy ( who has already been picked up by Reading. He reckons no Swindon scouts are to be seen at most local games.

Hope this changes with KevMac - bringing on youngsters is essential for clubs of our size

Reading have a good system and offer free coaching to schools in this area.  I know STFC do the same but it does seem that Reading are well in front of us in that respect.  I know a young lad (he's 10) who goes up to Reading twice a week for coaching.  Three months after he signed up with them a Swindon scout was at his youth game and went away disappointed when the youth team manager told him he was too late!!

[pauld]

If it were up to me id have a very basic setup from 5-15 year old and invest most money on 16-18 bringing in drop outs from prem teams hoping to pick up a few gems.

If you did that you wouldn't have a youth system from 5-15, you'd have the equivalent of what Football in the Community do now. Which is great work, my two love the courses they do, but it's not a youth development system per se. And everyone would be moaning about how all our best kids were getting poached by Southampton, Reading, Arsenal etc (even more than they do already).

[Saxondale]

My 10 year old nephew has been poached by reading from derry hill.  Played his first game a couple of weeks ago.  I told him he should join Swindon as I want free tickets.

[phelpsieboy]

Piccaretta was also our chief scout if his Linkedin page was anything to go by.

[GoSWINDON]

Reading have a good system and offer free coaching to schools in this area.  I know STFC do the same but it does seem that Reading are well in front of us in that respect.  I know a young lad (he's 10) who goes up to Reading twice a week for coaching.  Three months after he signed up with them a Swindon scout was at his youth game and went away disappointed when the youth team manager told him he was too late!!

My friends nephew is 8 or 9 and he's been picked up by Reading , hopefully we will start doing this again

[Batch]

My friends nephew is 8 or 9 and he's been picked up by Reading , hopefully we will start doing this again

8 and 9 year olds are regularly picked up by Town scouts. In fact at U9 that is the point you can
no longer play for STFC (academy) and a local team.

Whether the Town scouts are slow to the party compared to Reading I have no idea.

There is also an STFC "development squad" at that age too (and younger). They are the players that are not quite of academy standard, but are good enough to keep an eye on.

Whether the whole system works or not I don't know have heard its cliquey). I know that some of my lads team-mates were acadamy but most got let go (except 1) , and of those 1 of them are now at Reading (who again have an Elite and not as Elite system)...

[Frigby Daser]

Reading have a fully fledged academy and, I suspect, a far larger budget. When I was 13-14, during the McMahon promotion season (when we could still claim to be the larger club) I spent a year at a supposed Swindon School of Excellence in North Hampshire - about 20mins the other side of Reading. They had about 100 young players a week, played gamea against Reading and Oxford and most importantly, we got free tickets! The best of that bunch were sent to the main set up. Our lack of reach is part because of a recent lack of focus and part because the bigger clubs will more often than not get first dibs.

[OOH! SHAUN TAYLOR]

I would like to be the first to say that this thread has gone to complete and utter shit. When I look at a 'transfer rumours' thread, I want to see rumours about transfers. Not people dicking around and pontificating about Reading's schoolboy scouting network or some fucking under 11 team. Start another thread if you must.

Thank you

Meanwhile, I have it on very, very good authority that 'KM' as I am going to refer to him from this point forward, is extremely keen on bringing in a certain ginger haired, former West Ham/Man City/Norn Iron/Wurzle Gummage look alike midfielder as a player coach until the end of the season.

Make of that what you will but it's got to be more interesting than Dorcan fucking under 8's.

[Ginginho]

Lomas is finally joining?!

[Samdy Gray]

If that happens, the TEF will implode.

[OOH! SHAUN TAYLOR]

Lomas is finally joining?!

D'oh! You've ruined the suspense  

I do think it's finally going to happen though.

Seriously.

[Saxondale]

Lomas is finally joining?!

His son is.  He plays for reading under 8's.