FOOTBALL
COMPETITIONS
The whole idea of the Academy is to give EVERY footballer/learner the opportunity to play and train to develop as a player in all physical, technical and psychological aspects of the game.
The National League U19 Alliance
The League attracts clubs from the English Football League and the National League System Steps 1-5. The objective of the competition is to provide a high-quality experience for 16-19-year-olds both on the pitch and through nationally recognised educational qualifications.
ECFA East Midland Category 2 InvitaTion A
This league is a Catergory 2 League and opponents include Academys that are not linked to football clubs, many run by ex professionals.
ECFA East Midland Category 2 InvitaTion B
This a regionalized college league that pits us against the likes of Central College and Derby College. We also enter the Premier Cup which is a National College competition.
FA Youth Cup
A fantastic opportunity for our youngsters to showcase their talents and play against some of the best up and coming players across the country. Last year we reached the first round proper for the third consecutive year. This resulted in a home tie vs Wales oldest professional club, Wrexham. In the previous years we have been narrowly beaten by MK Dons and Scunthorpe United after progressing to the main rounds of the competition.
Central Midlands League
As well as all of the above, we enter an adult team into the Central Midlands League structure under our Long Eaton United Community FC Team. One of the aims of the Academy is to bridge the gap between Youth football and Senior football. The way we do this is to enter a young development/CFC side in to the Central Midlands League. This will be run by Academy Manager Paul Holland and will continue to test our young players both physically and mentally and prepare them for the next step to First Team football at the club when ready.
Successes that our Academy Coaches have worked with;
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Liam Lawrence - ex Sunderland FC and Republic of Ireland
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Bobby Hassell - ex Barnsley FC
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Craig Disley - ex Grimsby Town FC
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Lee Williamson - ex Sheffield United FC
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Alex John Baptiste - ex Blackpool FC
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Jake Buxton - ex Derby County FC
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Che Adams - Birmingham City and England U21
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Rhys Dolan - Barnsley FC
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Lewis Walker - Derby County FC
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Ash Hunter - Fleetwood FC
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Nathan Arnold - Lincoln City FC
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Dan Udah - Crewe Alexander FC
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Tom Hopper - Scunthorpe United FC
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Jordan Cropper - Burnley FC
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All of these players were Youth Team players under our coaches and have gone to play at the highest level. There are many more who have progressed to a very good level.