Saints may not be up to the Wigan / Leeds standard but they are a step ahead of us.

Lomax
Grace
Percival
Makinson
Knowles
Thompson
Roby

All in the Saints fist choice 17 this year I expect - we can't match that. Only probably Currie, Cooper and maybe one of Livett/Smith/Patton on the bench.

I think they also went through the academy season unbeaten last year? Possibly the year before.

Saints have brought a lot of good players through their Academy system over many years, to try and say they aren't good at junior development is ridiculous.

Since the Harris and Sculthorpe era (when we also brought through other players who became solid SL pros in Hilton, Wainwright, Penny and Roper) basically we have brought through Paul Wood, Chris Riley and Mike Cooper as players who have been good quality SL players over a long period, plus one outstanding talent in Ben Currie, and one player who drifted out but showed surprising resilience to fight back in to the top flight in Kevin Penny.

That is about it, and plenty on here liked to slag off Chris Riley who was one of our better finds...

Well you argue a case so I'll except Saints are perhaps are a step ahead of us(a step mind you)...while the pair of us are a marathon off the Pies and a half marathon off Leeds.

....however, Simon Middleton is keen on Wire to have the best youth development in SL....
We are the only team paying and offering big transfer fees on academy players along local finds.

I heard there was some board discontent that deals for some well regarded youth targets and top players, were falling through after looking a done deal, following the final chat with former coaching personal.
This could be the driving reason to appoint new staff.

I am delighted the club is making statements about making our youth policy the best, it has under delivered for a long, long, time. I appreciate the list Sally produced but how many of those would have got into a title aspiring side. We have produced 2 internationals in 20 years - Cooper and Currie and the latter actually came through the Wigan system.

Anyhow, looking positively, we now have a club that is prepared to invest in the best youth and also spend money in getting the first team talent now until that delivers.

joe greenwood.

Yeah, I was going to list the Saints academy players at other SL/Top Championship clubs as I feel that's a great indicator of your strength at youth level, but I took the easy route and looked at their 2018 squad instead!

One issue that we have had from my experience was that Warrington offered substantially more than the players home town (and u16s) club. Player has gone back and negotiated with hometown club who improved their offer (but didn't match Warrington's). And then the player has been swayed by loyalty and previous record of home town team so signed for them. This is something that is difficult for Warrington unless the Warrington area start producing talent.

Yes.
This I've said on here a couple of times in the past...however it does make it difficult to debate the point when the overlooked lads don't kick on at our rivals.

Youth development is a two way street. If a club is so called investing in youth it also needs to invest in persevering with young players to give them confidence. A player will not develop if he is constantly shipped in & out of the team for tying his bootlaces wrong. I am not surprised our young players have not developed ,either in skill or confidence,under the previous regime.

This is where we could benifit if we could put Cullen back in the picture somehow?

Cullen must be over 50 years old, if he was going to make it he would have done by now

Although persevering with him would probably give us more go-forward than we had last season.

4 of our former players now at Salford, 2 at Hull KR, 1 at Leeds, 1 at Widnes. Lots that have dropped down to Championship and Championship 1 level though. A fair number that have dropped out of the game completely as well.

I have been away from the Warrington area now for years but is Rugby being played in the secondary schools in the area? If it isn't the job becomes very difficult.