 |
This article does not cite any references or sources. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (August 2008) |
| Full name | Aston Villa Football Club Reserves | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The Villans | |||
| Founded | 1874 | |||
| Ground | Home Stadium: Villa Park Aston Birmingham B6 6HE England Home Stadium (Winter): Greene King Stadium Hinckley Leicestershire LE10 3DR England (Capacity: Villa Park: 42,585 Greene King Stadium: 4,329) |
|||
| Chairman |  Randy Lerner |
|||
| Head Coach |  Kevin MacDonald |
|||
| League | FA Premier Reserve League | |||
| 2007-08 | FAPRL Southern Division, 1st | |||
|
||||
Aston Villa Reserves are the reserve team of Aston Villa, they have been part of the FA Premier Reserve League since its foundation in 1999 and are current holders of the Premier Reserve League South title. The team plays its home games at Villa Park - during the months of Autumn and Spring - and the Marston's Stadium (home of Hinckley United) - during the winter months. In accordance with Villa's impressive youth development, the team has received success in recent years - as well as becoming victorious in the 2003/04 and 2007/08 seasons, the team has regularly sustained high positions along with the second-string becoming a place of learning for the likes of current first-teamers Gabriel Agbonlahor, Craig Gardner, Nathan Delfouneso, Stephen O'Halloran and Isaiah Osbourne, as well as former players Gary Cahill, Lee Hendrie, Darius Vassell and Steven Davis amongst many others. The team is currently coached by Kevin MacDonald, but Aston Villa Youth Team coaches Gordon Cowans and Tony McAndrew also have close links with the second string. The Reserve team is primarily made up of players aged 16-19 - in the priority of development. The team also regularly includes fringe first-team players and first-team players recovering from injury.
Contents |
Matchday
The Reserve team play their league matches at Villa Park from September to November and March to May, winter fixtures (December, through to February) are played at De Montfort Park (Marston's Stadium). Matches are played on weekday nights (usually Mondays) - although the day varies from match to match.
History
Signs of the team date back to 1892, when Aston Villa Reserves joined the Birmingham & District League. After finishing in the runners-up position twice in the first 2 seasons of the competition, Villa finally won their first trophy in the 1894/95 season, amazingly winning 26 out of 30 league games and losing just once all season. Several titles followed after this achievement, including an extraordinary run of 8 consecutive titles between 1902 and 1910. When Villa finally left the Birmingham & District League in 1915, they had accumulated a total of 12 league titles and 6 runners-up finishes.
In 1999–2000, the FA Premier Reserve League was set up, Villa were one of the founding members, and were split into the Northern section of the league. Three disappointing seasons followed, however in the 2003/04 season - inspired by brothers Stefan Moore and Luke Moore - Villa eased to their first title. In the two seasons which followed (04-05 and 05-06) - Villa agonisingly finished both campaigns as runners-up, both times to Manchester United. In the 2006/07 season, for the first time since its introduction, the FA Premier Reserve League excluded Coca-Cola Championship teams from playing in the league, with the 20 senior English Premiership teams parallelling the teams involved in the FA Premier League. This also meant that due to geographical circumstances, Aston Villa Reserves were switched from the Northern Division, to the Southern equivalent, for the first time since the start of the original format in 1999. Villa eventually finished 4th - winning 9 out of their 18 games, with Luke Moore the top goalscorer, with 7. The season saw the impressive development of several youngsters, most notably including Zoltán Stieber, Shane Lowry and Stephen O'Halloran, all of which were rewarded with first-team opportunities in the pre-season fixtures, prior to the 2007/08 season.
In the 2007/08 season, Aston Villa Reserves clinched the Southern title for the first time in their history, however they lost in the national final, losing 3-0 to Liverpool. This included the most goals scored by all 20 participating teams (38) and two 6-0 victories (against Chelsea and Derby County, home and away respectively). Swede Tobias Mikaelsson was the top scorer with 8 goals, followed by strikers Nathan Delfouneso and Marlon Harewood (4 each). Zoltán Stieber and Nathan Baker both scored twice. The season was also notable for the impressive development of several young players, such as Nathan Delfouneso, Barry Bannan, Ciaran Clark and - most remarkably - the rise of young defender Nathan Baker, who stepped up from Under-16 level to Reserve regular inside a single season. Furthermore, Reserve regulars; Nathan Delfouneso, Marc Albrighton, Elliot Parish and Nathan Baker were all rewarded for their efforts, with places on the summer tour of Switzerland.
In the 2008/09 season, Aston Villa retained there Southern title and beat North champions Sunderland 3-1 to be declaired out right Premier Reserve League champions for the 2008/09 season
Reserve squad
|
|
Hong Kong Soccer Sevens
The yearly invitational seven-a-side tournament brings together the best youth and reserve sides in the world, and this competition has brought notable success to Aston Villa in the past - with a squad of reserve and youth players fielded for the 3 day event.
Villa - inspired by Stephen Cooke and Steven Foley clinched the trophy in the final against Manchester United in 2004 for their first success. Striker Gabriel Agbonlahor captained Villa to the semi-final in 2006 - losing to the eventual winners Urawa Red Diamonds - and also received the 'Player Of The Tournament' accolade. Villa won the competition again in May 2007, beating Central Coast Mariners of Australia in the final, with Hungarian playmaker Zoltán Stieber winning 'Player Of The Tournament'. Villa then went onto win the competition again a year later, defeating Yau Yee Select, Bulova Rangers and PSV Eindhoven in the group stages. Further victories against Eastleigh, Australian Institute of Sport and Glasgow Celtic in the final, ensured the title was regained. Additionally, young Scottish midfielder Barry Bannan won the 'Player Of The Tournament' accolade.
Honours
- Winners:
- 1894/95, 1895/96, 1899/00, 1902/03, 1903/04, 1904/05, 1905/06, 1906/07, 1907/08, 1908/09, 1909/10, 1911/12
- Runners-Up:
- 1892/93, 1893/94, 1897/98, 1898/99, 1900/01, 1910/11
- Winners:
- 1879/80, 1881/82, 1882/83, 1883/84, 1884/85, 1887/88, 1888/89, 1889/90, 1890/91, 1895/96, 1898/99, 1902/03, 1903/04, 1905/06, 1907/08, 1908/09, 1909/10, 1911/12, 1984/85
- Runners-Up:
- 1875/86, 1880/81, 1892/93, 1894/95, 1900/01, 1901/02, 1923/24, 1982/83, 1994/95, 1995/96
FA Premier Reserve League North
- Winners:
- 2003/04
- Runners-Up:
- 2004/05, 2005/06
FA Premier Reserve League South
- Winners:
- 2007/08 2008/09
- Winners:
- 2008/09
- Runners-Up:
- 2007/08
HKFC Philips Lighting International Soccer Sevens
- Winners:
- 2004, 2007, 2008
Aston Villa Academy
Aston Villa Academy is the youth development system of Premier League team Aston Villa, it covers the age of under-18's - and for the 2007/08 season - participated in Group B of the FA Premier Academy League. Victories over Arsenal and Manchester City subsequently earnt Villa the national Academy title in 2007/08.
In the 2007/08 season Villa clinched top spot in Group B, impressively notching the most wins (22), most points (68) and most goals (84) of all 41 clubs involved. Villa's youngsters were drawn against Group A winners Arsenal in the semi-final, which was won via a single strike from Nathan Delfouneso. This subsequently meant a final against FA Youth Cup winners Manchester City, which was comprehensively won 2-0, with goals from James Collins and Chris Herd. The top scorers for the season were James Collins (23), Austrian striker Andreas Weimann (16), Nathan Delfouneso (15) and Scot Barry Bannan (13).
As well as this, Villa also reached the semi-finals of the FA Youth Cup, eventually being knocked out by eventual runners-up Chelsea, and were victorious in the prestigious Ergenzingen Tournament in May 2008. A draw against HNK Hajduk Split, and subsequent victories against Ergenzingen FC and São Paulo FC, placed them in a semi-final against FC Thun 1898. A 1-0 victory earnt them a final against 1. FSV Mainz 05, where a late strike by Harry Forrester won the Villains the trophy.
The team train at Bodymoor Heath in North Warwickshire and also play their home matches there on weekends. The system has been very productive in recent years, heavily down to the influence of Head Youth Team Coach Gordon Cowans and Youth Team Coach Tony McAndrew.
Staff
- Academy Coach: Tony McAndrew
- Academy Coach:
Gordon Cowans - Academy Director: Bryan Jones
- Assistant Academy Director: Steve Burns
- Academy Goalkeeper Coach:
Rafael González-Robles - Head of Education and Welfare: Paul Brackwell
Current squad
| Player | DOB | Position | International Caps | Previous Club | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Others (players born between September 1, 1989 and August 31, 1990) | |||||
|
Elliot Parish | May 20, 1990 | Goalkeeper | Capped at Under-16 level | Trainee |
|
William Ricketts | September 6, 1989 | Defender | – | Trainee |
|
Matthew Roome | October 12, 1989 | Defender | – | Trainee |
|
Sam Simmonds | March 17, 1990 | Defender | – | Trainee |
| 2nd Year Scholars (players born between September 1, 1990 and August 31, 1991) | |||||
|
Nathan Baker | April 23, 1991 | Defender | – | Trainee |
|
Daniel Bradley | May 13, 1991 | Midfielder | – | Trainee |
|
Faraz Ahmed | May 5, 1991 | Forward | – | Birmingham City FC |
|
James Collins | December 1, 1990 | Forward | – | Coventry City |
 |
Thomas Dau | August 9, 1991 in Pama | Goalkeeper | – | SV Schwechat Juniors |
|
Harry Forrester | January 2, 1991 | Midfielder | Capped at Under-16 and Under-17 level | Watford |
|
Robert Gucher | February 20, 1991 | Midfielder | Capped at Under-17 level | Grazer AK |
 |
Lance Heslop | December 4, 1990 | Forward | Capped at Under-17 level | Auckland City |
|
Dominik Hofbauer | September 19, 1991 | Midfielder | Capped at Under-17 and Under-18 level | SK Sturm Graz |
|
Andreas Weimann | August 5, 1991 | Forward | Capped at Under-17 level | Rapid Vienna |
| 1st Year Scholars (players born after 1 September 1991 ) | |||||
|
Durrell Berry | May 27, 1992 | Forward | – | Trainee |
 |
Richard Blythe | – | Midfielder | Capped at Under-19 level | Trainee |
|
James Clifton | November 28, 1991 | Defender | – | Trainee |
|
Jack Dyer | December 11, 1991 | Midfielder | – | Trainee |
|
Calum Flanagan | December 30, 1991 | Defender | – | Trainee |
|
Gary Gardner | June 29, 1992 | Midfielder | Capped at Under-16 level | Trainee |
|
William Grocott | January 27, 1992 | Midfielder | – | Trainee |
|
Joseph Jackman | – | – | – | Trainee |
|
Jason Lampkin | April 24, 1992 | Midfielder | Capped at Under-16 level | Manchester United |
|
Ben Love | September 22, 1991 | Defender | – | Trainee |
|
Sam Norris | – | Forward | – | Trainee |
|
Hayden Goodwin | – | Forward | – | Trainee |
|
Tomos Roberts | September 23, 1991 | Defender | Capped at Under-16 and Under-19 Level | Manchester United |
|
Ryan Simmonds | October 30, 1991 | Midfielder | – | Trainee |
 |
András Stieber | October 8, 1991 | Midfielder | – | Trainee |
Honours
FA Premier Academy League U17s
- Winners:
- 2003/04.
FA Premier Academy League U18s
- Winners:
- 2007/08.
Ergenzingen Tournament
- Winners:
- 2008.
- Runners-Up:
- 2007.
Notable Academy Graduates
| Player | DOB | Position | First-Team Debut | First-Team Appearances | First-Team Goals | Current Club | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Ciaran Clark | September 26, 1989 | Defender | August 30, 2009 (vs Fulham) | Ongoing | Ongoing | Aston Villa |
|
Marc Albrighton | November 18, 1989 | Midfielder | February 26, 2009 (vs CSKA Moscow) | Ongoing | Ongoing | Aston Villa |
|
Barry Bannan | December 1, 1989 | Midfielder | December 17, 2008 (vs Hamburg SV) | Ongoing | Ongoing | Aston Villa |
|
Nathan Delfouneso | February 2, 1991 | Forward | August 14, 2008 (vs Fimleikafélag Hafnarfjarðar) | Ongoing | Ongoing | Aston Villa |
|
Isaiah Osbourne | November 15, 1987 | Midfielder | October 21, 2006 (vs Fulham) | Ongoing | Ongoing | Aston Villa |
|
Gary Cahill | December 19, 1985 | Defender | April 1, 2006 (vs Arsenal) | 31 | 1 | Bolton Wanderers |
|
Gabriel Agbonlahor | October 13, 1986 | Forward | March 18, 2006 (vs Everton) | Ongoing | Ongoing | Aston Villa |
|
Craig Gardner | November 25, 1986 | Midfielder | December 26, 2005 (vs Everton) | Ongoing | Ongoing | Aston Villa |
 |
Steven Davis | January 1, 1985 | Midfielder | September 18, 2004 (vs Norwich City) | 102 | 9 | Rangers |
|
Luke Moore | February 13, 1986 | Forward | February 22, 2004 (vs Birmingham City) | 98 | 14 | West Bromwich Albion |
|
Peter Whittingham | September 8, 1984 | Midfielder | April 23, 2003 (vs Newcastle United) | 66 | 2 | Cardiff City |
|
Liam Ridgewell | July 21, 1984 | Defender | January 4, 2003 (vs Blackburn Rovers) | 93 | 7 | Birmingham City |
|
Rob Edwards | December 25, 1982 | Defender | December 28, 2002 (vs Middlesbrough) | 9 | 0 | Blackpool |
|
Stefan Moore | September 28, 1983 | Forward | September 11, 2002 (vs Charlton Athletic) | 30 | 2 | Halesowen Town |
 |
Thomas Hitzlsperger | April 5, 1982 | Midfielder | January 13, 2001 (vs Liverpool) | 114 | 12 | VfB Stuttgart |
|
Stephen Cooke | February 15, 1982 | Midfielder | August 2, 2000 (vs Celta de Vigo) | 4 | 0 | Unattached |
|
Jonathan Bewers | September 10, 1982 | Defender | April 15, 2000 (vs Tottenham Hotspur) | 1 | 0 | Retired |
|
Adam Rachel | December 10, 1976 | Goalkeeper | December 26, 1998 (vs Blackburn Rovers) | 1 | 0 | Solihull Moors |
|
Darius Vassell | June 13, 1980 | Forward | August 23, 1998 (vs Middlesbrough) | 201 | 45 | Ankaragücü |
 |
Darren Byfield | September 29, 1979 | Forward | December 28, 1997 (vs Leeds United) | 10 | 0 | Walsall |
|
Richard Walker | November 8, 1977 | Forward | December 28, 1997 (vs Leeds United) | 10 | 2 | Burton Albion |
|
Lee Hendrie | May 18, 1977 | Midfielder | December 23, 1995 (vs Queens Park Rangers) | 308 | 32 | Derby County |
References
|
|||||||||||
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
