Charlie Telfer Decision Reached by Tribunal

[Super Cooper 0]

At some point someone is going to have to ask how Dundee Utd are managing to portray themselves as Ajax-like when it comes to youth development. In the 70s and early 80s perhaps but not more recently. They're including both Goodwillie and Conway in their list of 'home-reared' stars both of who made their first team debut's in 2006. In that time Rangers have had Allan Mcgregor, Charlie Adam, Danny Wilson, Alan Hutton, Steven Smith, Rhys McCabe, John Fleck, Ross McCormack, Andy Little, Fraser Aird and Lewis MacLoed all play for our first team. That's before you bring in players we've brought in from other clubs and improved and developed before selling on.

 

We're not very good at developing young players either, something universally agreed.

 

I was at Utd in the 90s and it was the best youth set up in Scotland bar none.

[Frankie 8,562]

I was at Utd in the 90s and it was the best youth set up in Scotland bar none.

 

I was at Utd in the early 90s and had to help take the training in Edinburgh. I was 15 and a goalkeeper.

 

Generally the Utd system has had a lot of praise but it was far from perfect and usually West-coast/Glasgow centric. Elements of it were very good and others far from perfect and several first team players tried to dissuade me from signing 'S' Form.

 

Add in the 3+3 and 4+4 year £35 per week contracts at that time then Utd can't claim the moral highground here.

[Super Cooper 0]

I was at Utd in the early 90s and had to help take the training in Edinburgh. I was 15 and a goalkeeper.

 

Generally the Utd system has had a lot of praise but it was far from perfect and usually West-coast/Glasgow centric. Elements of it were very good and others far from perfect and several first team players tried to dissuade me from signing 'S' Form.

 

Add in the 3+3 and 4+4 year £35 per week contracts at that time then Utd can't claim the moral highground here.

 

I didn't recognise you at the dinner but we may in fact know each other.

[Frankie 8,562]

I didn't recognise you at the dinner but we may in fact know each other.

 

Haha - most probably!

 

I signed 'S' Form in 1991 and was there for 18 months or so before being told (by phone) I was being released because I wouldn't leave Hutchison Vale (in Edinburgh) to play for Utd's then-youth team Helenvale (in Lanarkshire) and/or leave education to sign full-time. All for expenses or £35 a week for an 6-8 year contract.

 

In early 1993, I was then dropped from the Scotland national under 16 squad because I wouldn't attend a January coaching session in Dingwall during my Higher prelims.

 

In general, not many people associated with Scottish youth football can claim the moral highground when it comes to developing youngsters. Hopefully things have changed in the intervening twenty years but I certainly wasn't putting my future in the hands of sharks. I think I made the right decision thankfully...

Edited December 10, 2014 by Frankie

[der Berliner 3,743]

Sayest Thompson ...

“It will restrict the opportunities for some of our most promising young players to gain regular first-team football and act as a deterrent to any Scottish football club which wishes to take such players on.

 

“Today’s decision is completely at odds with the stated aims of our football authorities in respect of encouraging our most promising young players to play first-team football at the highest level.

 

The whole ruling is meant to protect the clubs who spend ages developing a player and then he signs for a bigger team for next to naught. It protects in essence the smaller clubs who have to do this job for lack of other means. I wonder what Thompson would have said had it been Arborath and not Rangers letting Telfer go. The rule was meant to have these Arbroaths and East Fifes receive an amount of money for their efforts. Likewise, it protects Dundee United should Everton or Cardiff come calling for one of the Arabs to take them to a higher level of football, after the "Tannadice School of Excellence" had reared him to maturity. I likewise wonder how many Arabs have come to Tannadice from smaller clubs throughout these years after being brought up by small and Junior teams, who got 200 pounds or the like for their efforts ...

Edited December 10, 2014 by der Berliner

[Super Cooper 0]

Haha - most probably!

 

I signed 'S' Form in 1991 and was there for 18 months or so before being told (by phone) I was being released because I wouldn't leave Hutchison Vale (in Edinburgh) to play for Utd's then-youth team Helenvale (in Lanarkshire) and/or leave education to sign full-time. All for expenses or £35 a week for an 6-8 year contract.

 

In early 1993, I was then dropped from the Scotland national under 16 squad because I wouldn't attend a January coaching session in Dingwall during my Higher prelims.

 

In general, not many people associated with Scottish youth football can claim the moral highground when it comes to developing youngsters. Hopefully things have changed in the intervening twenty years but I certainly wasn't putting my future in the hands of sharks. I think I made the right decision thankfully...

 

Did you play with Kevin Byers? He was a few years above me but we still all trained together at Crownpoint and the Gussy.

 

You were a few years before me. I was at their school of excellence between 94-96. Though my decision to leave was slightly different. They actually encouraged me to stay on at school, or rather told me to, which was something i simply couldn't do.

 

You would have known Kenny Cameron and Graeme Liveston, also Maurice Malpas was just getting into the coaching at the time.

[Frankie 8,562]

Did you play with Kevin Byers? He was a few years above me but we still all trained together at Crownpoint and the Gussy.

 

You were a few years before me. I was at their school of excellence between 94-96. Though my decision to leave was slightly different. They actually encouraged me to stay on at school, or rather told me to, which was something i simply couldn't do.

 

You would have known Kenny Cameron and Graeme Liveston, also Maurice Malpas was just getting into the coaching at the time.

 

Nah, I didn't know Kevin but it was Kenny and Graeme who signed me. The former I couldn't stand, the latter was a gentleman.

 

Malpas did help coach the younger teams at the time as did Davie Bowman. Unfortunately, it was when the latter didn't turn up to Edinburgh training sessions, I had to help as the eldest player there. I also didn't like Sturrock and Hegarty who were the first team coaching team at the time bit I did get on well with Jim McLean who was still the manager when I was there.

[Super Cooper 0]

Nah, I didn't know Kevin but it was Kenny and Graeme who signed me. The former I couldn't stand, the latter was a gentleman.

 

Malpas did help coach the younger teams at the time as did Davie Bowman. Unfortunately, it was when the latter didn't turn up to Edinburgh training sessions, I had to help as the eldest player there. I also didn't like Sturrock and Hegarty who were the first team coaching team at the time bit I did get on well with Jim McLean who was still the manager when I was there.

 

Graeme was my coach, i think he was also Scotland Under 15s manager at the time and a Religious Education teacher at Holy Cross in Hamilton. I think that was it's name. He drove a big white Passatt. Kenny was a hard man, very hard to please. I remember running a mock at the Nike tournament and hearing my team mate big Jim Paterson tell Mr Liveston how good i was. Graeme was always amazed at how hard i could hit the ball despite being built like the side of a fiver at the time.

 

I liked Luggy, i recall going to a few games with him. As a kid i thought i was teen royalty! I will tell you a cracker about Jim McLean, i was standing behind the big dutch goalie they had at the time in the canteen up at Tannadice and Jim walked in, stood staring at me for a second and then said to me, "you look like a wee proddy". Haha I will never forget it. I just laughed and said "aye, am ur". Lol. He patted me on the head and walked away. We had some cracking teams at that period. I played with some decent players, a couple of whom played for Rangers and represented Scotland as well.

[Ser Barristan Selmy 222]

At some point someone is going to have to ask how Dundee Utd are managing to portray themselves as Ajax-like when it comes to youth development. In the 70s and early 80s perhaps but not more recently. They're including both Goodwillie and Conway in their list of 'home-reared' stars both of who made their first team debut's in 2006. In that time Rangers have had Allan Mcgregor, Charlie Adam, Danny Wilson, Alan Hutton, Steven Smith, Rhys McCabe, John Fleck, Ross McCormack, Andy Little, Fraser Aird and Lewis MacLoed all play for our first team. That's before you bring in players we've brought in from other clubs and improved and developed before selling on.

 

We're not very good at developing young players either, something universally agreed.

They have a fraction of our resources and are doing a far better job. In the last 2 or 3 years only 2 youngsters have played regularly for us and one of them is useless.

[der Berliner 3,743]

On a sidenote, methinks the Arabs train at St. Andrews University's sports complex, don't they?