They do play more then twice a year you know

...and thought this thread was about our academy?..well done to phil finney and all the lads

That has been said but who where these first teamers? And I mean actual first choice players compared to your boys... team sheet?

Noticed Grady, Houghton & Yates in that side (pics)Yates will be 21 I think the others are both under 20 and have played first team but also due to injuries... and isn't that the idea?

Well done Widnes!

Oh my gosh! I never knew they had.

Sorry I forgot that it all had to be a Widnes loving. Well done on 3rd place a semi final place.



On a serious note, I wish all pro/semi clubs had the same structure in place, i.e U15/16/18 Reserves.

Can't supply a team sheet, would imagine there will be links online somewhere.

I do apologise over the three players mentioned, I actually thought they were older, seemed to have played for a while now (good thing!)

I had looked for one out of interest



Yea well we based the most of our 'squad' around youngsters but obviously we didn't expect them to play as much as they did, Grady mainly for kicking and Houghton was superp early season in the pack when he would of only been expecting the odd run out here and their! Yacca was first choice back up but due to injuries and other things with Ford also played a lot from the start... but by the end of the season the 3 didn't feature much but hopefully Grady & Houghton will improve even further next season too!

Heard Fev lost out to Haven in final? But heh to have Firsts & reserves in finals can only be a good thing! And on your point above, heard noises from Fev that they are looking to do just that with junior ranks

Haven battered Fev in the first half, there no.7 (signed from Quins) kicked us to death and they built up a fantastic lead. Infact they played that well in the first half we never had the ball in their half.

We've always had a youth structure, but it's not as organised as it is under Powell, obviously his experience with Leeds is playing a big part.

I suppose next year will be a big year for the reserve players coming through and cementing a spot before you are awarded a license.

TBH Our reserves don't feature that much! Bar the one's already in the first team squad... whenever we have had to call on fresh meat we've gone straight to the under 18's... what that say's I don't know but have a feeling our youth was built up again by SO'C / TO'C & Co from the bottom up and the current 20's if you like will be casualties of that!

It'll be good to see the Widnes squad in 5 years time, if they are nurtured in the correct manner, in theory they will be breaking into the squad then.

It's a very result for Widnes, well done to them.
The comment about let's see them in 5 years is very apt but perhaps not for the reason the writer thought.

Widnes are very vulnerable to having their best youngsters poached by bigger wealthier clubs leaving the Vikings with lads who are not their best.
Myler is the obvious case. The name is a rugby dynasty in the town yet he was gone in a shot when Salford came in for him. Even they couldn't hold on when Wire came with their big money contract.

The Widnes management are ahead of the game and I do hope they have procedures in place to prevent this. The most obvious is that when they come into SL they recruit quality players in numbers and immediately spend up to the salary cap. Once they have done that on their 25 highest paid then they can offer as good a contract to lads out of that 25 to any of the larger SL clubs.

Long term I do think the RFL/SL have to come up with a solution to the problem of poaching. Smaller clubs will always be so if their best players leave. If their best players can stay and the team become successful then the smaller clubs can develop their buisiness better with an ever increasing financial turnover and hopefully, profit.

We must remember with Myler he left with the club in administration hence we had no chance to re sign him as didn't have a board etc to put on offer to him and all current deals were void so he was in effect a free agent!