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What a great story on FOOTBALL focus today, Glen Hoddle has setup an academy for British players who didnt quite make it at Premier clubs for whatever reason.

Really refreshing to see ths happening as there must be lots of young lads who have the talent but have not been guided in the right way.

You could see Hoddles passion in this and its not a money spinner either as he pointed out.

This transfer window 3 of his lads got deals at Bouremouth, Mansfield and someoe else cant remeber, oh Doncaster i think.

Maybe worth someone at Torquay giving Hoddlea call

I've read alot into this club since first seeing it on Football Manager 2010. Supposedly many of the Spanish fans of the league the GHA play in are getting very annoyed and they've lost quite a few fans through this. It's great that they've created this academy and it is gradually starting to work with a couple players moving to La Liga and the 2nd division (Liga Primavera is it?) but how long it will last, I'm not sure. I believe Hoddle has the support of the chairman though.

I can believe that Cambgull. I was reading Ryan Zico-Black's autiobiography (Non-League journeyman who played for Morecambe, Lancaster, Barrow, Kettering and a few other teams - not recommended reading, it was an awful book), and he wanted to try something different and went over to Spain in the summer for pre-season to try and find a club. But despite playing at a much higher level in England, even teams with less than 100 crowds just wouldn't give him a deal, even though he (in his opinion) was far, far better than anyone else when he did manage to get a trial. He said that non-Spanish players just aren't welcomed in the lower leagues in Spain.

I think the idea is excellent though, and hopefully the youngsters can get a 2nd chance and re-climb up the ladder. The team they play for were in a lot of trouble, and probably wouldn't have survived without Hoddle giving them a whole squad to play with without having to pay any wages at all.

Am I to infer from the post made by Gulli that this is the same Jerez side which was relegated from BBVA (La Liga) last year or the year before with something like 4 points and a -150 goal difference? Got beaten 8-0 by Barcelona on two separate occasions?

Matt.

Edit: To correct not one, but TWO separate spelling errors. I'd blame the drink, but that it we're true <3

ferrarilover wrote:Am I to infer from the post made by Gulli that this is the same Jerez side which was relegated from BBVA (La Liga) last year or the year before with something like 4 points and a -150 goal difference? Got beaten 8-0 by Barcelona on two seperate occassions?

Matt.

Given your obsession with laughing at grammatical errors by other posters, I was somewhat shocked to find the above....

ferrarilover wrote:Am I to infer from the post made by Gulli that this is the same Jerez side which was relegated from BBVA (La Liga) last year or the year before with something like 4 points and a -150 goal difference? Got beaten 8-0 by Barcelona on two seperate occassions?

Matt.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/footbal ... 384983.stm

scottbrehaut wrote: Given your obsession with laughing at grammatical errors by other posters, I was somewhat shocked to find the above....

It's not an obsession, it's a larf, and I only do it when it's really bad and worth making a joke of. If you'd be so kind as to highlight the offending section, I'll gladly review, but from where I'm sitting, it's a perfectly acceptable piece of prose.

Matt.

OK, substitute "grammatical errors with "spelling mistake" and see how you go now.

I know it's not an obsession, hence the stupid smiley type guy at the end of my post....

scottbrehaut wrote:OK, substitute "grammatical errors with "spelling mistake" and see how you go now.

I know it's not an obsession, hence the stupid smiley type guy at the end of my post....

I know you know it's not an obsession, hence the absence of genuine abuse in my reply. Now Frenchie, have a and let me get back to my spill chequer.

Matt.

the academy has been there for about 5 years now, I think. And it's a different team; not the same Jerez who were in La Liga. This team is called Jerez Industrial.

Hampton & Richmond's best player, a half decent midfielder called James Simmonds, was at the GH Academy after leaving Chelsea as a kid, but it's hardly a ringing endorsement that Level 6 is as good as players from there can manage when they get back to England.

Why does it not surprise me that at a team which basically trains kids, Graham Rix is involved?!