National League 2017-18

White Army

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A sad day for the club, but after reading why it’s understandable. Without our academy the club wouldn’t exist, it saved us financially on many occasions through bringing players through and selling them on. The likes of Jason Koumas, Aaron Cresswell, Ryan Taylor, Max Power and many more all started at our academy, jeez I was even in it at a young age. I wasn’t as profitable for the club as they were though.

I think it shows just what a mess the new system is though. It’s grossly unfair. Why should the value of a youth player be determined on the performance of a first team? It shouldn’t, and it’s another example of the big clubs throwing their weight around and the smalller clubs feeling the consequence. Football is 100% ran nowadays in a way that reduces the chances of lower clubs competing. Leicester winning the title is something some would point to as disproving that but it’s an anomaly. Everything is stacked towards the elite clubs.
 
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Luke Imp

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Yep, I've argued against EPPP for many years.

We sold Jack Hobbs to Liverpool in 2006 in a deal worth £750k, which we got a decent amount of, plus a friendly. Under EPPP, I think it would have netted us about £50k or something silly.

When we got relegated and our funding got cut, we had Chris Moyses who donated towards the running of the youth set-up to give them some breathing space initially and the Club contributed £25k a season (the youth system and the main football are run separately with separate boards). They youth board calculated that they could really slim it down but still run it well enough on £50k-£75k a year so they generally hit their fundraising total of £50k and with the Club's contribution that got them to where they need to be for the first 4 years.

Then the Club couldn't afford to help them out for Year 5 and 6 in our NL years but I'm assuming they still had some Moyses money left and made it through ok so I'm not sure what would have happened if we were down there for another couple of years.

We were quite lucky because Leicester, Villa and Birmingham took quite a few of our young players over our NL years and whilst we were entitled to nothing, they actually paid us for them. Not at full EPPP level I don't think, but at least it was something when they didn't have to. We were supposed to play Leicester as part of a youth player deal but it got called off on police advice...!
 

Huntsman94

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Lot of people jumped the gun by saying it's closing when it isn't. I agree that the EPPP rules are a farce for the lower league clubs and so it's understandable the decision that has been made however it's also sad to see the age groups shut from U15s down. I'm of the understanding that it will start up again with the U9s as a centre of excellence with parents having to pay (which you wouldn't think would be a problem). So though they're stopping for now, can expect them to be up and running in an altered format in the coming years.
 

iesty wfc

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wrexhams youth system costs an estimated £125k a year to run. fine when you have the parachute payments for the first 2 years after relegation, but after that there is no funding whatsoever.

definitely needs a rethink
 

Tranmerewhite

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wrexhams youth system costs an estimated £125k a year to run. fine when you have the parachute payments for the first 2 years after relegation, but after that there is no funding whatsoever.

definitely needs a rethink
Nothing to do with parachute payments, just lack of protection for genuine quality that clubs might produce.

A PL team can just take an entire squad if they’re winners in the hope one of them is a gem.

Not to say that the system was great before either, we never got much for Leon Osman or Steven Gerrard, I wonder how their careers went?
 

White Army

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Nothing to do with parachute payments, just lack of protection for genuine quality that clubs might produce.

A PL team can just take an entire squad if they’re winners in the hope one of them is a gem.

Not to say that the system was great before either, we never got much for Leon Osman or Steven Gerrard, I wonder how their careers went?
Steven gerrard never played for Tranmere
 

iesty wfc

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we had Michael Owen on our books at U8 or U9. c'est la vie
 

E10rifle

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Steven gerrard never played for Tranmere

We’ve had plenty of 13/14 year olds stolen from us since the EPPP con came in. Couple of them have made their PL debuts this season (Amoah at Southampton and Sterling at Spurs). Arsenal have stockpiled most of them.
 

Tranmerewhite

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We’ve had plenty of 13/14 year olds stolen from us since the EPPP con came in. Couple of them have made their PL debuts this season (Amoah at Southampton and Sterling at Spurs). Arsenal have stockpiled most of them.
All about even more money for PL teams whilst destroying the national team.
 

White Army

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He was in our u15 team that won a youth cup competition. I have the team image somewhere if you’re bothered.
He was never contracted to Tranmere. He worn a Tranmere shirt once when playing in a competition hosted at Prenton Park. We were never in a position to get money for him.
 

Railway Blue

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wrexhams youth system costs an estimated £125k a year to run. fine when you have the parachute payments for the first 2 years after relegation, but after that there is no funding whatsoever.

definitely needs a rethink

We have a very good youth system which is run by volunteers and is sponsored by Swettenham's the Chemist. It is just starting to produce players for the first team and we sold Sam Hughes to Leicester for £125k plus add ons.
 
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The_Boss

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Danny Whitaker came through our youth team (admittedly after he'd be released by Man Utd), anyone know how he got on in his career?
 

iesty wfc

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We have a very good youth system which is run by volunteers and is sponsored by Swettenham's the Chemist. It is just starting to produce players for the first team and we sold Sam Hughes to Leicester for £125 plus add ons.

you got mugged there then ;)
 

Master D

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Danny Whitaker came through our youth team (admittedly after he'd be released by Man Utd), anyone know how he got on in his career?

Bobby Charlton has fond memories of him, after playing alongside him when they were both coming through at United.
 

The_Boss

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Bobby Charlton has fond memories of him, after playing alongside him when they were both coming through at United.
Sir Bobby has been known to say Duncan Edwards could have been the new Danny Whitaker.
 

GTFCfish

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Whilst we were in non league I was very keen on the idea of 3 up 3 down being much fairer as it's such a tough League to get out of.
However after now having time to reflect fully on it I have changed my mind and Ive realised that 2 up 2 down is more than adequate.
Thanks for asking. :2thumb:
IMG_0485.JPG
 

Master D

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Has Martin Allen taken over at Barnet yet?
 

Railway Blue

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Whilst we were in non league I was very keen on the idea of 3 up 3 down being much fairer as it's such a tough League to get out of.
However after now having time to reflect fully on it I have changed my mind and Ive realised that 2 up 2 down is more than adequate.
Thanks for asking. :2thumb:
View attachment 7968

What goes up usually comes down again. Unfortunately we won't be here to greet you.
 

B2TF

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Whilst we were in non league I was very keen on the idea of 3 up 3 down being much fairer as it's such a tough League to get out of.
However after now having time to reflect fully on it I have changed my mind and Ive realised that 2 up 2 down is more than adequate.
Thanks for asking. :2thumb:
View attachment 7968
No REAL football club should be in favour of 3 up 3 down - in a league where the gap between clubs with 1500-3000 fans and those with 2-300 can be comfortably bridged with a cheque for 2 or 3 hundred thousand pounds, it will only serve to further encourage the bankrolled-Tin-Potter phenomenon. The only winners are the megalomaniac chairmen soothing their own egos on an utterly pointless quest to ram some Mickey Mouse outfit into a world where they don't belong, and the losers are the REAL clubs who run themselves properly on the money they've earned through the turnstiles and merchandise sales, and now find themselves outspent by NOTHING clubs, with no fans and NOTHING to offer the game at all. 3 up 3 down only condemns another REAL club each season to this football limbo that is the National League. And for what? 30 years after the introduction of automatic relegation there are only 12 teams in the Football League that weren't there in 1987, 9 of them in what is still Division 4, regardless of what they choose to call it.

These are mostly Southern based (i.e. where the money is). Meanwhile, the clubs now outside the Football League that were present in 1987, are mostly Northern based (i.e where the fans are).

In summary, more promotion places only benefits the Tin Potters and works against the REAL clubs' interests. :£:£:£
 

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