League Football Education (LFE) has recognised the on and off pitch achievements of 11 young footballers, including Northampton Town's Dylan Hill.
‘The 11’ acknowledges the football and academic progress of Under-18 players on apprenticeships at current or former English Football League (EFL) clubs – and is also designed to assess other factors, including involvement in community or charity-based initiatives.
A total of 33 apprentices from a selection of 1,100 are recognised for the award during the 2021-22 season, which celebrates the holistic development of young players and is a barometer applied to the LFE Apprentice of the Year awards.
Notable academy graduates to earn the accolade includes Jude Bellingham (formerly of Birmingham City), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (formerly of Sheffield United), Ademola Lookman (formerly of Charlton Athletic), Oli McBurnie (formerly of Bradford City) and Ryan Sessegnon (formerly of Fulham).
‘The 11’ for April 2022 is as follows:
• Tommy Fogarty (Birmingham City)
• Patrick Gamble (Blackburn Rovers)
• Joel Tabiner (Crewe Alexandra)
• Aman Panesar (Hull City)
• Dylan Hill (Northampton Town)
• Dale Taylor (Nottingham Forest)
• Kane Badby (Oldham Athletic)
• Will Jenkins-Davies (Plymouth Argyle)
• Toby Steward (Portsmouth)
• Mikey O'Neill (Preston North End)
• Shannon Brown (Queens Park Rangers)
DYLAN'S PROFILE
Under-18s captain Dylan Hill has been an exemplary apprentice since joining the Apprenticeship Programme at the start of the season, after initially spending a year as an extended schoolboy. During his first year, the midfielder has overcome learning difficulties to achieve well above his predicted grade on the BTEC Diploma and has trained with the first team on numerous occasions after impressing the coaching staff with his solid performances for the Under-18s.
It is his attitude, work rate and commitment that have made Hill a standout student and player during the first year of his apprenticeship, and Academy Education Lead Peter Stephenson believes Hill’s efforts are worthy of recognition.
Speaking to LFE, Stephenson said: “Dylan has been an example to all the apprentices right from day one. His attitude is fantastic towards all aspects of the apprenticeship. He conducts himself impeccably at all times, leads by example, and his work rate and desire to be the best version of himself are there for all to see.
“He is a lower-level learner but in his BTEC he is regularly hitting merit and distinctions through the effort he is putting in to overcome the learning issues he has. Although he has an EHCP, he has never let it hold him back and the progress in his education has been fantastic.
“Maths has been a huge barrier, and we have seen him trying so hard to do the best he can. He recently received the news that on the second attempt, he passed his Functional Skills Level 2 Maths with a score of 47. Given that he has a bit of dyscalculia, this is a fantastic achievement and one he has managed to get down to the pure effort and hard work he has put in.
“His attitude, work rate and commitment make him a model scholar on and off the pitch and one that certainly deserves to be recognised by the LFE 11.”