Exeter City's latest crop of youngsters continue to impress

Exeter City manager Gary Caldwell has hailed the latest crop of youngsters coming through the Grecians’ academy. Liam Oakes was named man-of-the-match in City’s 2-1 EFL Trophy victory on Tuesday night over Swindon Town, while 15-year-old Louis Cayless became the second youngest player ever when he came on late on.

With Exeter ’s 479 game run of starting an academy graduate which dated back to January 2016 having come to an end at the start of the season, and with several products who came through the youth system having departed in the summer, there have been fears that the pipeline was running dry. But Tuesday night shows that the next crop coming through could be the latest in a long line.

From Ollie Watkins, to Matt Grimes, to Josh Key, to Joel Randall – and many more – City’s academy has been a constant source of vital income for the club. Alfie Pond, another of those who departed, captained Wolves’ U21 last night. The latest was Jay Stansfield – with the Grecians receiving a sell-on fee as a result of the striker’s move to Birmingham City from Fulham.

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The exact fee is unknown. But City are believed to be set to receive around £2m as a result of the move, but it will be paid in several installments over several years.

“It is brilliant for the club,” Caldwell said. “He was a special one and we are delighted with that. I think we will get the final payment when I’m about 58, but how it is structured fans have to be aware of that.

“We will look after the money and spend it in the right way and allow the club to drive forward. It is one of the major reasons I came to the club, the academy and younger players. We have had a difficult time in terms of a unique batch of players who have left which meant numbers have dwindled but the next generation are coming through. Not many clubs are playing players this age and we can see the rewards of doing so.”

Oakes, 17, made his City debut in the EFL Cup against Walsall last month and it is fair to say he had a difficult night playing in an unfamiliar midfield role. But playing as a right wing-back on Tuesday in the win, he was named man-of-the-match and produced an outstanding performance – while Ed James and Jake Richards also impressed – while 15-year-old Cayless came on late on.

“I thought he was brilliant,” Caldwell said of Oakes. “He has to take experiences for what they are and for him to bounce back from Walsall shows the quality he has as a player and a character so I am delighted for him.

“His crosses were fantastic, showed great fitness levels, and he can be really happy with his performance. He had a difficult experience at Walsall but I said to him experiences good as a young player to come back from and in his next game to be man-of-the-match. He showed his quality all night.”

Oakes received the traditional champagne from the sponsors having been named man-of-the-match. Sadly for him, he is too young to drink it – and admitted he’ll have to find someone else to give it to – with Caldwell hinting he wanted it!

“It was a great experience,” the teenager said. “To see the fans, the second half right behind me cheering and gave me more oomph. It was my first time at SJP. The experience was great.

“I feel knackered, it was tough on the legs as the intensity is a lot different to the U18s so you get tired a bit earlier but have to dig in.”

City had squandered plenty of chances before they finally took the lead in the 65 ^th minute. Ed Francis put Exeter ahead and he slotted home a calm finish after a well-worked and quickly taken corner.

But that lead lasted just two minutes as Joel Cotterill lashed home a brilliant strike from distance to level it up. However with 10 minutes to go, Jack Aitchison drove forward from halfway, checked inside, and lashed home a stunning strike into the top corner - a goal worthy of winning any game.

That enabled Cayless to come on late on for his City debut. The 15-year-old became the second youngest player in Exeter’s history – a month younger than Ethan Ampadu – with only Ben Chrisene, another now playing at a much higher level, younger.

“We wanted to get him on,” Caldwell added. “He has been great in pre-season and showed his quality. He is extremely young, but he stood up to the challenge and this experience will do him the world of good.”