Comments on: Everton sign 7 year-old Harry Yates – is this too young?

By: a coach

a coach — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 09:06:12 +0000

what are you all on about?

the kid has only gone there to be coached professionally.

if you identify a certain player no matter what age with a reasonable amount of ability and potential, professional clubs ‘pursue them’ to coach them and make sure there getting the best coaching and teaching to progress.
surely being coached by a professional club with a world class youth reputation and facilities as good as everton by professional coaches, is nothing but better for the kid, rather than every sunday morning getting coached by one of the other kids dads who’s probably been on the piss the night before.

morale of the story…

identify a player with ability and potential and offer them the best coaching and facilities as possible to help him progress.

the younger the player you find with that amount of ability the better and age 6 – 12 is the golden age to install raw talent and onto a player. teach a player how to play at the age and he’ll never lose it, only get better and better.

By: anonymous

anonymous — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 22:07:21 +0000

The story is innacurate. Academies rules state that a play can not sign for an academy until he reaches the unbder 9 age group. Until then he is free to go wherever he likes. Man Utd will take him if they really want him. He could go to five different clubs a week until then and still ending up dropping four of them for the big time and backhanders!! Sorry for being a killjoy you evertonions!!!!!!!

By: twoleftfeet

twoleftfeet — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 19:52:27 +0000

The point to all the grabbing of kids who can play a little is the terror clubs feel at loosing out on the next Ronaldo or Rooney. No-one knows if a player is going to make it until he is 15 (generally) so they train them from as young as possible. The trouble is the age is getting younger and younger (I heard Liverpool were going around the maternity wards)plus you look at ‘You Tude’ every kid who can kick a ball 10 yards is put on it by a parent as the next Pele.

The FA has to put an age restriction on academies to around aged 10. I heard of a little boy aged 7 who could not play 2 years above his age and was not invited back..rejected at 7!!!

By: Liviu Bird

Liviu Bird — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 00:50:04 +0000

Marcus, goalkeepers play with their feet more than they do with their hands. Therefore, it is a detriment to his development to limit him to playing only in goal at such a young age. There will be a right time to specialize, but seven years old is far from it.

By: Bryan

Bryan — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 00:34:05 +0000

As someone in the States with some experience of being recruited (for collegiate lacrosse) at a young age, and of working with youngsters who have similar dreams of playing professional hockey and baseball when they get older, it’s definitely interesting to see the differing experiences across the pond. In these sports in North America, you don’t get the right to draft players until at least high school age, and several of the major sports leagues have restrictions on the age a player must be, whether or not he’s reached college, whether he’s still eligible to play at the collegiate level, which are almost development leagues in their own right. Here, students work very hard, spending their own time and money, for the eventual, not-guaranteed-at-all hope that they *might* get drafted and become property of a major league sports team – a status which carries the same situation as young Harry Yates here. There’s no guarantee they’ll ever “make it”. Yet so many young people struggle on, well into their adult years, for that one glimmer of hope. Is one situation any better, or worse, than the other? Is being selected at such a young age a benefit or detriment if a young person is dedicated to the sport? I don’t know.

By: Marcus

Marcus — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 19:16:10 +0000

I think its good to see keepers at such a young age. It shows that the future of english football is good with kids playing at this age.

And what if he doesn’t want to play football in a couple of years?

But overall, i think its good to see kids at young ages like harry when people slag off the england team saying we have no upcoming talent.

By: Liviu Bird

Liviu Bird — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 17:58:16 +0000

As a goalkeeper, this kind of stuff I don’t agree with. Who actually knows that they’re going to be a goalkeeper for their entire career when they’re seven? Who actually knows that this is what they want at age seven?

Personally, I used to cry when I was put in goal at that age. Until I was ten, I was terrified of playing between the sticks. But then something clicked and it grew on me. I just recently decided that I want to pursue a career in football, and I’m almost 18. I played in the field at least half the time until I was 14.

I think it’s important for development to allow keepers to play in the field until they’re at least 14. That and at such a young age, is it really the player’s signature on the contract and his dreams that are being pursued, or is it his parents’ dream that is being pursued?

By: Felipe

Felipe — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 15:38:05 +0000

wow a new low on everton besides showing us wayne rooney and other characters, byt 7 years old, go to a a third world country and get a 20 year old goal keeper that can be trained better than him, his little ego must be over the bar…

By: Rob Hankin

Rob Hankin — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 15:10:31 +0000

“He was at Bournemouth for a while but he stopped growing at around 5â€²8â€³. It doesn’t matter how talented he is, at that size he will never go beyond semi-pro football.”

Jorge Campos is one of the most famous international Goalkeepers of recent years. He played for mexico 130 times many times as captain. He is also very famous for having scored 11 goals at club level. All at a height of 5ft 6″

By: Darren Cowzer

Darren Cowzer — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 13:29:22 +0000

As an Everton Fan and a Father,
I Simply think that 12 never mind 7 is too young.
I wish young Harry all the best but surely professional clubs should not be allowed to Cradle Snatch like this.
Change the rules and ban the practie.
If Harry is showing his ability in his early teens – sign him up.
Just picture all the other little 8 and 9 year olds who believe their dream is over and they are now on the scrap heap.
Shame !