2023/24 RETAINED LIST

The romanticist in me loves the idea of blooding a team of young players developed in the youth academy having been scouted playing for local grassroots teams. I've spent years coaching young players and my measure of success isn't how many games we win but how many players go on to play at a better level of football than Sunday League.

The correlation between the attitude of parents in grassroots and fans of professional football teams is quite similar. It doesn't matter what the performances are like as long as you're winning. Parents assume that the winning team is the one that is well coached and will help their child, which often isn't the case. Fans want to get behind young players and give them their chance but they best take it quickly because if they don't perform and they hinder results then they're quickly deemed not good enough.

It's already been mentioned here but any players in a L2 youth setup who demonstrate a level of ability that might propel them into the first team picture ahead of time to meet the demands of the game are inevitably snapped up from above.

With increased competition at all levels of the league structure as a result of better scouting, better training facilities and methods, better data   the room for young players to come through and hit the ground running is growing smaller I think, and at Grimsby it's not something we've excelled at in the same way as teams like Crewe have.

If this forum is anything to go by, more so when you see the harsh judgements of the squad and the demand that players are able to deliver on the pitch, would we not be setting a double standard if we lowered that expectation and reserved criticism just because of them being home grown? Is it ok to critique Jamie Andrews who is a young developing lad but from another club, but say it's ok for Khouri because he's one of ours?

We'd all love to see OUR young players come through but the reality is it's a high ceiling that is only raising giving the improving standards above and at the same level so as much as we and the club would like it I don't see it becoming a staple part of our ethos any time soon, sadly.

Quoted from Wyberway

I think we need to either commit to bringing through the youth or not. 1 year contracts for an 18 year old seems to be a half-hearted attempt to look like we’re trying.

I think it is important from a community aspect - getting youngsters and their families switched on to GTFC but otherwise I do agree.

You need to have the relative pace, physicality and a good mentality to get anywhere near a first team squad, and ability, and a lot of that is only known at the very late teen/early 20's ages which is just one of many reasons they are released.

Sometimes you get an exceptional player who is always destined for the first team but its not very often.

Quoted from TownSNAFU5

He needs to continue to believe in his abilities.

De Bruyne and Salah were rejected by Chelsea.

McAtee was considered lazy by Scunny.

Perseverance is the key.  

Salah and De bruyne both told mourinho that they didn’t want to wait for first team football and decided to leave. Their decision seems justified to do so but how many have gone down that path and never reached their potential.

Initial disappointment with the released is only really Bramwell as I thought he looked promising......
The ongoing talks I think we could do without in all honesty.

and I wouldn't be suprised if some of the retained list turned into left by mutual or transfer requested

This forum is mainly about opinions and that is where the problem with the youth set up lies. As pointed out the youth team did well this year but some of their numbers were not deemed good enough, an opinion by the decision maker.

We all have our opinions on whom should go and who we should offer terms to but at the end of the day there is only one opinion that counts. That of David Artell.

Love him or hate him he is the man entrusted by 1878 to push the Mariners up the table. So all we can do is back him, his judgement and his opinion.

Quoted from DB

This forum is mainly about opinions and that is where the problem with the youth set up lies. As pointed out the youth team did well this year but some of their numbers were not deemed good enough, an opinion by the decision maker.

We all have our opinions on whom should go and who we should offer terms to but at the end of the day there is only one opinion that counts. That of David Artell.

Love him or hate him he is the man entrusted by 1878 to push the Mariners up the table. So all we can do is back him, his judgement and his opinion.

I’ve watched hundreds of junior football games over the last 10 years from elite level to bottom end of grass roots and I’ve only seen one player who I think might make it in EFL football. Luckily he’s currently at Town and has been offered a scholarship

Pretty much what was to be expected.

Sad to see Glennon, Amos and Maher go. They've played a big part in some real success. Maher is the one that I think is a really decent player, hasn't hit form this year, but we've had a struggling defence all season. I think Crocombe leaving had a massive effect on both the confidence and performance of our defence.

Pleased to see Hume offered a deal, think he might get a better offer, he's looked alright having not had regular footie for a while. He's good going forward and has good pace, he'll get better if he stays.

Hope Harry signs, think he's unappreciated and his contribution is grossly underrated. Not hit the heights of the last two seasons, but never let anyone down.


Obviously sad to see Gav go but he's his own thread.

Quoted from DaleH

Not just saying this because he's a family friend and Skegness lad, but I was really surprised that 2nd year scholar and youth team captain Billy Bradley wasn't given a pro contract. The youth team had a really good season on the pitch considering the tragedy that occurred off it. Especially with the progress they made in the FA Youth Cup. And Billy was a big part of that as the skipper.

Given to understand that it wasn't Woodsie or Callum that decided not to give him a contract.

Gutted for the lad, because I know his history and have watched him progress as a player from being a small boy that used to play in our garden with my own kids. It's the tough world of progressing as a footballer, and often those decisions come down to the opinion of someone. And as we have seen many times in football, the opinions of people don't always mean that someone isn't going to succeed. And those opinions and decisions are not always the right decisions. But someone has to make them.  

What are you inferring here? Artell when questioned by Radio Humberside recently on offering professional contracts to youth team players was very clear that the decisions were made collectively between all the coaches. Obviously they might not all individually agree on which youth players are offered a pro contract, but this just sounds like excrement stirring.

Two members of my family represented their country at youth level and in my biased opinion could have progressed further but found the transition from being a very good player as a youth to being a good player as a potential professional was a big jump and demands an awful amount of commitment which unfortunately some lads just don’t have. We really have to go back to the Ford, Wilkinson,Moore era to see a transition from youth to first team as far as local talent is concerned which is disappointing and at the present time we only have Harry who is ‘one of our own’.

Now the dust has settled a little I can honestly say that the only departure that has disappointed me is Gav. Anyone at Morecambe away, when he missed a sitter that would have won us the game, saw what it meant to him at the final whistle. He was distraught and left the field almost immediately. Its not very often you get players that care that much for his club and team mates.
Sentimentality can't come into it when budgets are tight and you need to build a newish squad and I fully get that. I'm sure it wasn't easy either not offering him a contract. I think he will be missed on and off the field and thank him for some memorable moments.