Kevin Thelwell Q&A
We recently asked fans to send in questions for
Here below are a selection with Kevin's responses.
* When can the faithful expect to see more Academy players pushing for first team places, particularly now we are not taking part in reserve team football? Gerry Collins.
KEVIN: From a limited period of time here and previously as an outsider looking in, I've always had the impression that Wolves are a club with a really strong youth policy.
You can see that from all the players who have come through including the likes of
There's a tradition of the club producing young players and then providing opportunities for them.
And that's the reason why I wanted to come here in the first place.
Wolves have got a stronger policy towards youth in that respect than many of the other clubs I've seen or worked for before.
The key from an Academy perspective is for me to ensure that I develop players of the quality the manager wants and hopefully in time that will lead to more opportunities for more young players.
It's certainly becoming difficult for more and more young players to reach the top.
Research shows that there's not so many 16 or 17-year-olds playing Premier League or Championship football any more and it doesn't happen as much until they are 20 or 21.
As a result we need to understand we need to be patient with young players but the hope is that in time with a really strong youth programme we will continue to develop the high standards that have previously been in place.
In terms of reserve team football I see the development as a positive.
What generally tends to be the case is that you've got the first term squad who certainly in the case of our Club is usually striving for promotion with many players involved in that tough process.
There's then the small group in between with maybe the majority out on loan and then the youth players tend to end up involved in all of the games. And that can impact on their development.
On the face of it, it is opting out of a reserve team league but what we are opting into is organising a group of games that best serves the young players at our football club.
It's about measuring what we do rather than having our young boys playing 50-60 games a season.
It's certainly not a negative, and those boys sitting in that middle group are going to be well provided for in every sense of the word through a really balanced and detailed programme.
* What's the best bit of advice you would give to a young footballer? Ross Fletcher.
KEVIN: The first piece of advice I would give to a young footballer is to always work hard at your game.
Anything worth having is always difficult to get and certainly in football you have to develop techniques and skills of a very high standard.
Always listen to your coaches because they are there to help you and give you advice and want you to do well.
And the last bit is don't be afraid to dream about becoming a footballer.
Sometimes you don't realise how close you actually are to achieving something and you give up before you get there.
The next
So in a nutshell work hard, listen to advice and don't be afraid to try and achieve your dreams.
* As an Academy manager, what do you make of the influx of foreign players into the English game and does it harm the chances of our youngsters making the grade? Dave Wells.
KEVIN: The influx of foreign players can be seen from both sides.
It has been a real positive in many respects because of what they've brought with them in terms of preparation and improving the quality of play at the highest level.
The foreign players have also brought a more flexible style - certainly to the Premier League - which wasn't there before which has of course been aided by the influx of foreign coaches.
On the other side of the coin the more foreign players there are the less English players are going to be provided opportunities and I don't think we can get away from that.
The hope is that Academies such as ours develop players that are as good as, if not better, than the foreign product.
Clubs can also take a standpoint in that respect in terms of who they sign and what they sign.
To sum up, a balanced approach would be the right one to take, it's only a bad thing when you get a bit too much of it.
* What do you see as success in terms of the number of youth team squad members being offered contracts and finally fighting their way into the first team squad? What is the current status and plan for the future and how will you measure success? Peter Mullan.
KEVIN: It's always difficult to put a number on players being offered contracts.
If you can manage year-on-year to get one or two boys offered professional contracts and from there one into the first team squad that's usually seen as a success.
But obviously that is impacted and affected by so many different variables, and developing young players can be very difficult with so many ups-and-downs .
In terms of current status as I said when I came in I've inherited an Academy that's in good shape.
Like any programme there are things which can be improved and added and that's certainly the plan for the future.
I'm currently going through a process of reviewing and evaluating the programme and developing a medium/long term plan to take everything forward towards success - which is getting players into the first team squad.
The plan for the future is to maintain the tradition of developing young talent through a programme which provides players with all of the components to be fit and able to compete at Championship and Premier League level.
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