Youth Perspective Vs AFC Fylde (26.9.26)

United’s U23 supremo JAMIE RAYNOR pens his latest column this afternoon.

Good afternoon and welcome to the Jakemans Community Stadium for today’s fixture against AFC Fylde.

It’s been another busy period across the Academy, with our youth teams now fully under way with their respective seasons. It’s great to see our young players getting regular competitive football and continuing to progress through the club’s pathway.

For the U23s, we faced another excellent challenge this week as we travelled to the AVANT Training Centre to take on Norwich City U21s. It was a tough game against a strong academy side and another valuable experience for the group.

We’ve also had some positive movement with players gaining experience away from the club.

Rufus Brooks will extend his loan at Blackstones, while Jake Thompson will continue his dual registration there too. Stephen Pereira will also continue at Ely City following a positive start to his season.

We’re also pleased to welcome Jesse Omoregbee following a trial period. Jesse joins us from Hallam FC and IDA Sheffield and has featured for the U23s against both Accrington Stanley and Norwich City. He’ll now join a Step 3 club on loan, giving him another opportunity to gain valuable senior football.

Looking ahead, we’re also looking forward to our County Cup campaign. Having won the competition last season, we’ll begin our defence against Cleethorpes Town in the coming months and will be determined to give ourselves every opportunity to retain the trophy.

There’s plenty to be positive about across the Academy, and we’ll continue to work hard to provide our players with the experiences and opportunities they need to develop.

Thank you, as always, for your continued support of our Academy and U23 programme.

Enjoy today’s game. Up the Pilgrims!

Jamie Raynor

U23s Manager / First Team Coach