ACADEMY | U23s and U18s both to enjoy extended seasons

George Jones reports

Charlton’s U23s and U18s will both enjoy extended seasons this year, having again qualified for their end-of-season play-offs.

Jason Euell’s development squad are already assured of a top-two finish in Professional Development League 2 South and look set to win the league, as they did last season, while our U18s finished as runners-up.

As a result, both sides are in contention to win the national titles. Our U18s have done so in the last two seasons, while our U23s will be hoping to lift the national Championship for the first time since 2013.

Academy Manager Steve Avory said: “We are now in the fifth season since the introduction of EPPP and, in every one of those seasons, we have been involved in either semi-finals or finals. A great achievement that puts us right up there as a top academy at Category 2 level.

“Regardless of the outcome [of the play-offs], the U18s can be very pleased with their progress this season. From the outset, we knew that we would be a young U18 team with the majority of the group being made up of first-year scholars, so that augurs well for next year.

“The U23s certainly have a great chance to complete an impressive double, but they will face some difficult games ahead. Semi-finals are one-off games and can be very tough, but we are confident that we can go into the summer with plenty to celebrate, just as we have for the last two seasons.”

Full details on the U23s' and U18s' play-off semi-finals will be confirmed and published on www.cafc.co.uk in due course