Senior Cup decider against Spartans offers United young guns
NEWCASTLE United’s under-23 side concludes its season tonight at St James’ Park against Blyth Spartans in the Northumberland FA Techflow Marine Senior Cup.
In a season which started with a concerning 3-0 defeat at Blyth’s Croft Park on a balmy August night, it is fair to say there has been a marked improvement from the second string in terms of results.
Under former Sunderland coach
Elliott Dickman fortunes improved gradually as United managed to mount a play-off push in Premier League Two before finishing eighth.
Early on, Dickman made his views clear on results.
Down the years the importance of winning has been downplayed by some reserve team bosses or Academy coaches but not Dickman, who told the Chronicle early in his tenure: “Sometimes in youth football people say winning is a dirty word but I am a very competitive individual.
“I want to win every game we play but I would not sacrifice that to the detriment of somebody’s footballing development.
“It is a balance but I would expect every player to be committed, fully into the game and want to win.
“If you are not that way inclined - if you are a young player and you are thinking ‘I am not bothered if we win or lose’ then you are going to find it difficult to become a professional footballer.”
Since that pre-season defeat against Blyth, Newcastle have gone through four different coaches in Chris Hogg, Gary Caldwell, Kevin Richardson and Dickman.
Perhaps it was a surprise Newcastle’s reserves managed to make a fist of a promotion push at all this term.
Dickman had led something of a revival in the second half of the campaign but there remains work to do at the Academy.
Given the struggles of the under-18s this season, the club’s youth system is set to be one of incoming technical director Dan Ashworth’s first ports of call.
Make no mistake, there are talented youngsters on board at United such as Lucas De Bolle, Jay
Turner-cooke and Dylan Stephenson but whether their path to the firstteam is a successful one remains to be seen.
Newcastle rounded off their Premier League Two season on a winning note against Aston Villa - but from that teamsheet a clutch of those players will not be here next season.
Picking the best talent from an under-18 team which has struggled this term and bringing in some new signings in the summer is the next big task for United’s Academy boss Steve Harper.
However, for now Dickman and his players will look to sign the season off on a high against the Spartans.
Newcastle have won the Senior
Cup just three times in the last decade and it is a record which has room for improvement - and Dickman has already made his views on mentality crystal clear.