Wojciech Szczesny (back centre) joins his favourite Academy  squad

Published: 15 August, 2013
by STEVE BARNETT 

IT’S been a pretty unbelievable debut season for Academy Football Club.

In their first full campaign AFC have gained Arsenal goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny as their No.1 supporter. And they have almost doubled the number of youth players that they have on their books. They’ve even taken a squad of 16 boys to Florida to compete in the ESPN Under-13s Cup!

Based at Whittington Park in Islington, the club has netted 23 trophies over the last 12 months, including being crowned champions in the Under-11s Division of the Camden and Regent’s Park League and two Under-10s accolades at a competition hosted by Luton Town FC.

Having now added the Camden and Islington Midweek Youth League and the Echo League in East London to their fixtures list club secretary Liton Shah believes their success is down to a real team effort.

“We’ve grown bigger than I thought we would but, even though our numbers have almost doubled, our ethos on playing attractive, free-flowing, football will stay the same,” he said.

“We’ve brought in some new coaches, and as a team we’re going to work together to encourage our players to maximise their potential.

“Our goal is to give young players a helping hand reaching the top of their game.

“We develop their skills both on and off the pitch. It’s not just about the passing and moving, we like to look at the bigger picture, including the social and physiological side of the game.

“We get the boys involved in fitness camps and day trips to help them bond and build up their confidence.

“Our success isn’t about goals, or how many trophies we win, it’s about how the boys develop as players.”

• Players aged from Under-8s to Under-15s interested in signing up should call Liton on 07904 415791 or visit
www.academyfc.co.uk