A student at King’s Ely has represented West Bromwich Albion U16’s academy team.
Ben James, 15, was picked for the side to play at right full back against Nottingham Forrest at the City Ground. The match was played at a high tempo and Ben looked an accomplished performer using his pace and skills to great effect. In a tight game, WBA lost narrowly 2-1, but this challenging experience will put Ben in good stead to represent the club in future matches this year.
Ben is a current member of the Independent Schools Football Association at U16 level, after succeeding in impressing a number of national coaches from the FA to be included in the final squad of 32. Eamon Hatoum, also 15, was also selected at the highly competitive ISFA trials, where there was representation from 36 schools in total. As well as this significant achievement, two other boys from King’s Ely, Harry Webster (14) and Owen Coles (13), have been selected at U15 and U14 level.
Director of Sport, Ben Edmondson, commented, “We are very proud of the boys. I know that every one of these individuals puts a great deal of time and effort into their training programmes and they thoroughly deserve their selection in the squad. We wish them luck for their matches and hope to see them progress further in the selection process.”
Notable former players that have come through the ISFA selection process in the past include Frank Lampard and James Beattie.