In today's modern footballing climate arguably the most valuable footballing
commodity is young talent. However this is more due to the recession which
has occurred in the aftermath of the Bosman ruling. This ruling has seen :
the decline of astronomical transfer fees , less players being signed in a
deal involving a fee , player wages fall, more players being released. These
factors have led to most provincial clubs and even many larger clubs being
forced to take a long hard look at their youth set ups.

In Scotland youth set ups have been one of, if not the most ignored aspect
of the game. The results of which can be seen in the sad state of the
Scottish national squads results and performances (Germany aside). There is
only one youth academy where talent can be groomed. This being Rangers
fairly new Murray Park. Even the big two have ignored the value of youth.
Barry Ferguson being the main exception to the rule. Interestingly in one of
today's tabloids (18/06/03) , a newspaper not popular with Morton fans or
noted for its journalistic accuracy, there is talk of Rangers investing in a
training complex in Aberdeen. Should this story have substance surely a club
of Aberdeen 's size (well in relative terms at least) should not allow this
to happen. At present the bulk of the first team at Pittodrie is made up of
young players Darren Mackie, Kevin McNaughton for example are first team
regulars. Also to Aberdeen's detriment is the story of Jamie Stevenson , an
18 year old football hopeful who had trials with the 'Dons only to be
rejected on the grounds of being too small. He was subsequently snapped up
by Alloa Athletic. While on Holiday in Spain a Real Mallorca scout watched
Stevenson have a kick about with his friends on the beach. He was
subsequently offered a deal. In a fairy tale type situation young Jamie came
off the bench for his debut with his team trailing 3-1. Within 10 minutes
he had won a penalty and provided an assist and helped Mallorca snatch a 3-3
draw. If a Spanish Primera League side, arguably the best league in the
world, can recognise raw talent why can't a Scottish club. Possibly the
answer lies in what they look for : in Scotland they want boys over 6 feet
tall who can kick the ball the furthest from defence. Whereas in Continental
Europe they look for technical ability and couple this with physique.

Ajax Amsterdam's youth academy is an inspiration which clubs worldwide
should follow. A conveyor belt of talent for decades. From Cruyff through
Davids, Kluivert and many of the rest of the '95 European Cup to Rafael Van
der Vaart in modern times. Under the stewardship of Allan McGraw a similar
system developed at Cappielow, admittedly not on the same scale or ability
of player. Young players were produced on a shoe string with considerable
sell on fees. Names that spring to mind include Derek Collins, Brian Reid,
Derek McInnes, Derek Lilley and Alan Mahood. Unfortunately as we all know
the next few years did not go according to plan. However the youth set up
under Peter Weir was well respected , and in fact reached the semi-finals of
the BP youth cup in 1999 . The 'Ton youths faced Celtic at Parkhead in front
of approximately 3,000 fans in a close game which ended 1-0 after extra
time. Two success stories from that era who are still at Cappielow today are
David McGregor and Stuart MacDonald. MacDonald's return came via a spell at
Airdrieonians . McGregor in particular was an inspiration last season being
player of the year for a few supporters clubs and this Morton fans personal
player of the year. McGregor could be the first player Morton have
developed and sold on post McGraw. Other names from that era Morton fans
would recognise from first team football are Stephen Whalen (currently at
Ayr United after a spell at Livingston), Andy Carlin, Garry Tweedie, Brian
Kerr, Chris Aitken (who returned for a spell in 2001/02), Ross Robb and
Gavin Redmond. Of these only Carlin, Whalen and Aitken are still involved in
senior football. This shows that development of talent is a very fragile
area of football. Especially at present when clubs can't afford to keep
large squads with young stars sacrificed to save older more established
'stars'.

At present Morton have only just recovered from being on the brink of
oblivion . Youth will take it's time to come through again and as mentioned
above this may be a fragile process . However a priority of DDF Rae's must
be to establish a youth set-up and produce our own talent. Alex Williams ,
an excellent signing , was produced by Stirling Albion but allegedly
rejected by Morton. If we reared Williams ourselves we could have saved
£50,000 and reaped the rewards when selling him on. Admittedly this was
under the Scott regime. At present the Youth set up at Cappielow is seems to
be a source of confusion and concern of many fans : many of last years
under 18s have been released (Sean Curran who seemed a promising young right
sided midfielder was released without an official explanation) and the exact
set up for next year is not yet known. There will be a reserve team managed
by Stephen Frail , and there are rumours of u-17s , u-16s and u-15s. In
spite of this confusion there looks to be talent who could possibly push for
a first team place including Dean Keenan , Kevin Struthers, John Adam ,
Graham Dale and Jim McAllister. As shown at previous clubs in particular
Queen's Park, John McCormack is a manager who has a high involvement with ,
and enthusiasm for young players. On the national level Rainier Bonhoff's
Under 21 squad seem to be making strides. Hopefully we will discover a Wayne
Rooney or James McFadden of our own and once again become a club renowned
for our youth system. The future isn't yet rosy but maybe there is a glimpse
of light at the end of the tunnel.

JonaTon.