We catch up with Southampton’s FA Youth Cup runners up.
In 2005, Southampton’s talented under-18s team were edged out 3-2 on aggregate in the FA Youth Cup final by Ipswich Town.
12 years on, let’s see where this promising group of Saints youngsters ended up:
Adam Lallana, Nathan Dyer and Theo Walcott are playing in the top flight of English football.
Lallana ended his 14-year Southampton association with a move to Liverpool in 2014. The England international has already racked up over 100 appearances and 20 goals for the Reds.
Walcott has spent the last 11 years with Arsenal. The 28-year-old captained Arsenal in their recent fixtures against West Ham United and Crystal Palace.
Given the amount of talent in this Southampton side, it may be a surprise that Dyer is the only player with a Premier League winner’s medal. The winger spent last season on-loan at Leicester City before returning to Swansea City in the summer. Dyer has missed most of the current campaign through injury.
Forwards David McGoldrick and Leon Best play for Championship side Ipswich Town. McGoldrick had spells with Nottm Forest, Sheffield Wednesday and Coventry City until he made the permanent move to Portman Road in 2013. McGoldrick has bagged four goals this season, including the opener in the 3-0 win over Wigan Athletic at the start of the month.
Best has found himself out-of-favour under Mick McCarthy having not featured in the league since late December. The Tractor Boys are Best’s eighth team following his St Mary’s departure in 2007.
McGoldrick and Best are joined in the Championship by versatile Huddersfield Town defender Martin Cranie. The former Portsmouth and Coventry City man has largely been restricted to substitute appearances under David Wagner this season.
Lloyd James is hoping for play-off success with Exeter City this year. The central midfielder enjoyed a four-year stint with Leyton Orient before joining the Grecians in the summer. He has only missed one league game all season for Paul Tisdale’s side.
Kyle Critchell had been playing non-league football until health issues curtailed his career. The defender survived a serve sepsis and went on to play for Portland United last year. Critchell impressed during a trial with Dorchester in the summer but decided not to pursue a contract due to fitness concerns.
Likewise, Craig Richards spent some time in non-league football. He had a spell with Salisbury United before moving to Melbourne, Australia to play for Dandenong Thunder. He now appears to be out of the game.
Sebastian Wallis-Taylor, Tim Sparv and Andrew McNeil have also taken their talent abroad.
Wallis-Taylor returned to his native France with Ca Lisieux in 2009. He is still listed as a player on the club’s website and did have a spell as captain. Finnish-born midfielder Sparv plays for Danish side FC Midtjylland. He has missed most of this season with a knee injury.
McNeil enjoyed stints in Scottish and New Zealand football following his release from the Saints in 2006. He recently switched Greenock Morton for Guangzhou R&F, taking up a reserve goalkeeper coaching role with the Chinese Super League club.
Of course, the most high-profile member of this Southampton youth team plays for Real Madrid. Welsh international Gareth Bale, who was a substitute in the FA Youth Cup final, made a world record move to the Bernabeu in 2013 after developing into a world class footballer at Tottenham Hotspur. The 27-year-old has won two Champions League medals with Los Blancos.
Meanwhile, Sean Rudd hung up his playing boots in 2008 and now works as a New Business Development Manager.
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