Another youngster being pinched?

Looks like the big boys of the premier league are looking at out 17 year old Centre back Jack Batten

http://www1.skysports.com/football/...e-clubs-are-chasing-bristol-citys-jack-batten

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Afraid that's what happens when you have a good scouting system/academy and are stuck in the lower leagues.

 

Let's hope he follows Joe Morrell and decides to stay here! Can't wait to see what our club is like in 5 years. We'll have a new stadium, hopefully the academy is producing and we are a team challenging for the premier league

 

Some wil go, some will stay..

Get the quality through and maybe we'll see a few ourselves.

 

The future is very bright for Bristol City...had a good chat with Brian Tinnion today & the club will no longer let local players though the net...there going to look at the lad scoring plenty of goals(49) for Bradford Town!

 

He's on a three year contract so the situation is very different to school aged Academy members.
If we get safe well before end of season, he'll be getting some game time with City's first team.

 

Anyone seen him play - is he that good? Why has he not played for the first team?

http://www.sportsmole.co.uk/footbal...s/premier-league-clubs-eye-batten_119378.html

 

I new jack from his early days firstly playing with my youngest for yate utd they both played in defence.Jack was a outstanding player from a early age.i have to say he was also very good at Rugby as well he could have gone either route.
Jacks Dad is a big rugby fan and would have loved Jack to take the Rugby route.
The family is very level,and will want to see Jack go as far as he can,personally think he will go on to big things,he is a winner,a leader,and will go far.

All the best Jack your have the world at your feet, I know your Dad will keep your feet firmly on the ground.i would love to see you in the first team before you move on.

 

That's good news, but the reality is that anyone with any common sense will always want to play at the highest standard they can. Therefore at the moment the likes of Yeovil, Bournemouth and Doncaster are a better proposition for any promising talent. We may retain a few, but the very best will always leave

 

Not true! Any player with any common sense will want to play, not be sat on a bench, the quicker they get to hit the first team they know the more attention they will get nationally, this is the part of the deal where City have been letting them down, no real possibility of getting there! so they move to where there is a possibility of first team action, (not necessarily up!) The club have said they will stop buying high wage 'championship' journey men and give these kids a chance if they're good enough..

Whats not to like??

Look where Southampton are from using a similar process, (league 1 just 4 years ago!)

( I should edit, your last sentence is quite correct, the very best will always leave.)

 

Even though they are a league above we as a club are still more attractive to join over Yeovil and Doncaster. Brundle is perfect evidence of that. I was watching something on sky sports the other day about young players who leave their local clubs to move to a premier league club only for them to reach 18 and be released and then have to fight there way back into football at lower levels. Yes the likes of Wilsheres, Gerrards, Rooneys make it but that's because they are something special and they only come around once every 10 years or so. Think Batten would be wise to stay with us for his 3 years. When he is 20 if he was really as good as people are making out then he would have made it in the top leagues. Wasn't long ago we were tipping Riberio and James Wilson for big moves. Now one plays for league 2 Scunthorpe and the other cant even make it into our first team at 24.... The only young un im holding any hope for at the moment is Joe Morrell. 16 years of age and broke into our first team, must be something in him as this club never does that.

 

I have not seen any of the Academy sides including U 21's play, but there must be several who are very close to making the breakthrough to become first team squad members.
The major delay for them at present, is the league position of the first team and the very important need to stabilise the "fall of BCFC into the nether regions".
Once this is achieved, then we'll see the best ones getting first team game time.

 

I thought that Yeovil canned their youth setup? If so I very much doubt that any youngster would want to go there ahead of us.

 

Check out the Under 18 match against Newport. Its an eye-opener.

Hopefully March & April of 2014 will see the arrival of some new young stars of the future