2016–17 Professional U18 Development League

The 2016–17 Professional U18 Development League was the fifth season of the Professional Development League system for youth football.

League 1

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U18 Premier League
Season2016–17
ChampionsChelsea U18s (1st Title)
Matches played348
Goals scored1,235 (3.55 per match)
Top goalscorerMartell Taylor-Crossdale Chelsea U18s (21 goals)
Biggest home winChelsea U18s 13–0 Brighton & Hove Albion U18s
(18 February 2017)
Biggest away winSwansea City U18s 0–7 Reading U18s
(11 February 2017)
Highest scoringChelsea U18s 13–0 Brighton & Hove Albion U18s
(18 February 2017)
Longest winning run8 Matches – Manchester City U18s (10 December 2016 – 18 February 2017)
Longest unbeaten run21 Matches – Manchester City U18s (13 August 2016 – 18 February 2017)
Longest winless run20 Matches – Leicester City U18s (10 September 2016 – 11 March 2017)
Longest losing run6 Matches – Wolverhampton Wanderers U18s (16 November 2016 – 24 January 2017)
Sunderland U18s (13 August 2016 – 23 September 2016)
Swansea City U18s (28 January 2017 – 1 March 2017)

The league was split into two regional divisions, north and south. After playing each team in their own division twice, the league was split into a second league stage consisting of three further divisions. The winning team of Group A in the second league stage became the overall champion and qualified for the UEFA Youth League for the 2017–18 season.

First League Stage

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North Division

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Manchester City U18s 22 17 4 1 70 22 +48 55 Group 1
2 Manchester United U18s 22 14 4 4 63 31 +32 46
3 Liverpool U18s 22 14 4 4 50 33 +17 46
4 Blackburn Rovers U18s 22 13 5 4 40 27 +13 44
5 Everton U18s 22 11 6 5 49 35 +14 39 Group 2
6 Derby County U18s 22 10 2 10 38 45 −7 32
7 Middlesbrough U18s 22 7 3 12 33 40 −7 24
8 Stoke City U18s 22 7 2 13 34 49 −15 23
9 Newcastle United U18s 22 6 4 12 25 43 −18 22 Group 3
10 West Bromwich Albion U18s 22 4 6 12 29 42 −13 18
11 Sunderland U18s 22 3 4 15 23 55 −32 13
12 Wolverhampton Wanderers U18s 22 2 4 16 30 62 −32 10
Source: [citation needed]

South Division

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Chelsea U18s 22 16 4 2 68 21 +47 52 Group 1
2 Arsenal U18s 22 12 5 5 46 26 +20 41
3 Reading U18s 22 12 3 7 51 40 +11 39
4 West Ham United U18s 22 10 4 8 37 31 +6 34
5 Fulham U18s 22 9 6 7 39 32 +7 33 Group 2
6 Aston Villa U18s 22 9 6 7 31 39 −8 33
7 Tottenham Hotspur U18s 22 9 4 9 48 36 +12 31
8 Norwich City U18s 22 9 4 9 46 38 +8 31
9 Southampton U18s 22 7 5 10 28 41 −13 26 Group 3
10 Brighton & Hove Albion U18s 22 5 8 9 28 51 −23 23
11 Swansea City U18s 22 2 6 14 23 60 −37 12
12 Leicester City U18s 22 2 5 15 17 47 −30 11
Source: [citation needed]

Second league stage

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[1]

Group 1

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Chelsea U18s (C) 7 6 0 1 17 7 +10 18 Qualification for 2017–18 UEFA Youth League
2 Arsenal U18s 7 4 2 1 22 13 +9 14
3 Manchester City U18s 7 4 2 1 16 11 +5 14
4 Manchester United U18s 7 2 2 3 16 18 −2 8
5 Reading U18s 7 2 1 4 10 17 −7 7
6 West Ham United U18s 7 1 3 3 8 13 −5 6
7 Blackburn Rovers U18s 7 2 0 5 11 18 −7 6
8 Liverpool U18s 7 1 2 4 8 11 −3 5
Source: [citation needed]
(C) Champions

Group 2

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
9 Aston Villa U18s 7 5 2 0 15 5 +10 17
10 Tottenham Hotspur U18s 7 4 2 1 21 13 +8 14
11 Norwich City U18s 7 3 2 2 15 15 0 11
12 Derby County U18s 7 2 3 2 16 13 +3 9
13 Fulham U18s 7 1 4 2 15 16 −1 7
14 Stoke City U18s 7 1 4 2 9 13 −4 7
15 Middlesbrough U18s 7 2 0 5 10 16 −6 6
16 Everton U18s 7 1 1 5 4 14 −10 4
Source: [citation needed]

Group 3

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
17 Wolverhampton Wanderers U18s 7 5 1 1 12 5 +7 16
18 Swansea City U18s 7 4 1 2 11 6 +5 13
19 Newcastle United U18s 7 3 1 3 12 12 0 10
20 Sunderland U18s 7 2 3 2 5 6 −1 9
21 Leicester City U18s 7 2 3 2 10 12 −2 9
22 Brighton & Hove Albion U18s 7 2 1 4 11 10 +1 7
23 Southampton U18s 7 1 4 2 8 9 −1 7
24 West Bromwich Albion U18s 7 1 2 4 7 16 −9 5
Source: [citation needed]

League 2

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U18 Professional Development League
Season2016–17
ChampionsSheffield United U18s
Matches played283
(280 RS, 3 PO)
Goals scored1,048 (3.7 per match)
(1,041 RS, 7 PO)
Top goalscorerJordan Ponticelli Coventry City U18s (27 goals)
Biggest home winCoventry City U18s 9–0 Colchester United U18s (11 February 2017)
Biggest away winBarnsley U18s 0–7 Crystal Palace U18s (17 September 2016)
Cardiff City U18s 0–7 Coventry City U18s (4 February 2017)
Highest scoringCrystal Palace U18s 5–6 Nottingham Forest U18s (15 October 2016)
Longest winning run11 Matches – Coventry City U18s (3 December 2016 – 18 March 2017)
Longest unbeaten run15 Matches – Sheffield United U18s (10 December 2016 – 10 May 2017)
Longest winless run15 Matches – Birmingham City U18s (3 September 2016 – 7 January 2017)
Longest losing run6 Matches – Bristol City U18s (5 November 2016 – 10 December 2016)
Cardiff City U18s (25 February 2017 – 1 April 2017)

The Professional U18 Development League 2, also known as U18 PDL-2, was split into two regional divisions.

Teams played each team in their own division twice, and each team in the other division once, for a total of 28 games each.

At the end of the season, the teams finishing in the top two positions of both divisions met in the knockout stage to determine the overall league champion. Brentford withdrew from the competition after last year playing 4 seasons in the League.

Tables

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North Division

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Sheffield United U18s 28 19 6 3 68 32 +36 63 Qualification for Knock-out stage
2 Sheffield Wednesday U18s 28 15 4 9 62 46 +16 49
3 Nottingham Forest U18s 28 14 4 10 73 53 +20 46
4 Bolton Wanderers U18s 28 12 8 8 57 48 +9 44
5 Huddersfield Town U18s 28 13 3 12 60 49 +11 42
6 Crewe Alexandra U18s 28 12 4 12 56 55 +1 40
7 Barnsley U18s 28 9 10 9 51 58 −7 37
8 Leeds United U18s 28 8 8 12 42 49 −7 32
9 Birmingham City U18s 28 7 9 12 40 46 −6 30
10 Hull City U18s 28 7 7 14 39 62 −23 28
Source: [citation needed]

Source - Professional Development League North results

South Division

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Coventry City U18s 28 21 2 5 76 30 +46 65 Qualification for Knock-out stage
2 Charlton Athletic U18s 28 19 4 5 67 33 +34 61
3 Crystal Palace U18s 28 13 4 11 59 53 +6 43
4 Ipswich Town U18s 28 13 2 13 54 49 +5 41
5 Millwall U18s 28 10 5 13 50 58 −8 35
6 Watford U18s 28 9 5 14 30 40 −10 32
7 Bristol City U18s 28 8 6 14 39 55 −16 30
8 Cardiff City U18s 28 9 3 16 41 73 −32 30
9 Colchester United U18s 28 6 5 17 38 69 −31 23
10 Queens Park Rangers U18s 28 4 5 19 39 83 −44 17
Source: [citation needed]

Source - Professional Development League South results

Knockout stage

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Semi-finals

Sheffield United U18s2–0Charlton Athletic U18s
Hallam   51' (pen.)
Cantrill   60'
Referee: Mr D.Middleton

Coventry City U18s3–1Sheffield Wednesday U18s
Stedman   7'
Finn   16'
Ponticelli   39'
Borukov
Alan Higgs Training Centre

Final

League 3

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Football League Youth Alliance
Season2016–17
ChampionsNorth-East Division
Mansfield Town U18s
North-West Division
Blackpool U18s
South-East Division
Leyton Orient U18s
South-West Division
Exeter City U18s
Merit League One
Newport County U18s
Merit League Two
AFC Bournemouth U18s
Matches played698
Goals scored2,485 (3.56 per match)

League 3 is run by the Football League under the auspices of the Football League Youth Alliance. 50 teams once again competed this season. Burnley would be promoted to Category 2 Academy status after this season.

League stage

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As of match played 22 April 2017[2]

North-East Division

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Mansfield Town U18s (C) 24 16 4 4 41 15 +26 52
2 Rotherham United U18s 24 15 1 8 49 25 +24 46
3 Oldham Athletic U18s 24 13 5 6 47 22 +25 44
4 York City U18s 24 12 3 9 34 40 −6 39
5 Burton Albion U18s 24 10 7 7 47 44 +3 37
6 Notts County U18s 24 11 4 9 39 36 +3 37
7 Chesterfield U18s 24 9 5 10 46 43 +3 32
8 Doncaster Rovers U18s 24 8 6 10 37 35 +2 30
9 Hartlepool United U18s 24 8 6 10 38 45 −7 30
10 Scunthorpe United U18s 24 8 5 11 37 33 +4 29
11 Grimsby Town U18s 24 7 3 14 26 51 −25 24
12 Bradford City U18s 24 6 4 14 33 53 −20 22
13 Lincoln City U18s 24 4 5 15 26 58 −32 17
Source: soccerway.com
(C) Champions

North-West Division

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Blackpool U18s (C) 28 19 5 4 74 23 +51 62
2 Burnley U18s 28 18 6 4 64 35 +29 60
3 Walsall U18s 28 18 4 6 55 31 +24 58
4 Rochdale U18s 28 17 4 7 60 33 +27 55
5 Port Vale U18s 28 14 5 9 46 40 +6 47
6 Bury U18s 28 13 2 13 47 54 −7 41
7 Wigan Athletic U18s 28 10 10 8 53 41 +12 40
8 Shrewsbury Town U18s 28 10 9 9 47 50 −3 39
9 Fleetwood Town U18s 28 10 5 13 54 63 −9 35
10 Preston North End U18s 28 7 12 9 44 50 −6 33
11 Carlisle United U18s 28 9 2 17 44 56 −12 29
12 Accrington Stanley U18s 28 8 4 16 34 56 −22 28
13 Morecambe U18s 28 7 3 18 39 58 −19 24
14 Tranmere Rovers U18s 28 4 7 17 21 51 −30 19
15 Wrexham U18s 28 3 8 17 29 70 −41 17
Source: soccerway.com
(C) Champions

South-East Division

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Leyton Orient U18s (C) 22 18 2 2 59 23 +36 56 Merit League One
2 Southend United U18s 22 11 4 7 62 40 +22 37
3 Stevenage U18s 22 11 4 7 49 34 +15 37
4 Cambridge United U18s 22 9 8 5 46 30 +16 35
5 Luton Town U18s 22 10 4 8 48 38 +10 34
6 Gillingham U18s 22 10 4 8 44 51 −7 34
7 AFC Wimbledon U18s 22 9 5 8 40 30 +10 32 Merit League Two
8 Northampton Town U18s 22 6 6 10 49 61 −12 24
9 Dagenham & Redbridge U18s 22 7 3 12 40 65 −25 24
10 Barnet U18s 22 5 5 12 34 50 −16 20
11 Milton Keynes Dons U18s 22 5 4 13 45 63 −18 19
12 Peterborough United U18s 22 4 5 13 29 60 −31 17
Source: soccerway.com
(C) Champions

South-West Division

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Exeter City U18s (C) 18 11 2 5 36 26 +10 35 Merit League One
2 Bristol Rovers U18s 18 8 4 6 42 38 +4 28
3 Swindon Town U18s 18 8 4 6 36 34 +2 28
4 Plymouth Argyle U18s 18 7 5 6 40 35 +5 26
5 Newport County U18s 18 7 5 6 36 33 +3 26
6 Portsmouth U18s 18 8 2 8 35 41 −6 26 Merit League Two
7 Oxford United U18s 18 7 4 7 40 27 +13 25
8 AFC Bournemouth U18s 18 6 4 8 24 23 +1 22
9 Cheltenham Town U18s 18 6 4 8 37 40 −3 22
10 Yeovil Town U18s 18 4 2 12 19 48 −29 14
Source: soccerway.com
(C) Champions

Merit League Stage

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The teams in the Southeast and Southwest Divisions played another ten games to determine the champions of Merit League One and Merit League Two.

Merit League One

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Newport County U18s (C) 10 9 1 0 22 9 +13 28
2 Swindon Town U18s 10 5 3 2 25 16 +9 18
3 Exeter City U18s 10 4 3 3 20 18 +2 15
4 Stevenage U18s 10 4 2 4 22 20 +2 14
5 Southend United U18s 10 4 2 4 19 18 +1 14
6 Luton Town U18s 10 3 4 3 17 11 +6 13
7 Leyton Orient U18s 10 3 3 4 19 24 −5 12
8 Gillingham U18s 10 3 2 5 15 19 −4 11
9 Plymouth Argyle U18s 10 3 2 5 17 23 −6 11
10 Cambridge United U18s 10 2 3 5 16 21 −5 9
11 Bristol Rovers U18s 10 2 1 7 10 23 −13 7
Source: soccerway.com
(C) Champions

Merit League Two

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 AFC Bournemouth U18s (C) 10 7 1 2 24 10 +14 22
2 Peterborough United U18s 10 5 5 0 17 11 +6 20
3 AFC Wimbledon U18s 10 5 4 1 16 10 +6 19
4 Northampton Town U18s 10 5 1 4 19 20 −1 16
5 Oxford United U18s 10 4 3 3 16 13 +3 15
6 Portsmouth U18s 10 3 3 4 20 17 +3 12
7 Barnet U18s 10 3 3 4 17 19 −2 12
8 Milton Keynes Dons U18s 10 4 0 6 13 21 −8 12
9 Cheltenham Town U18s 10 3 1 6 13 17 −4 10
10 Yeovil Town U18s 10 1 4 5 12 20 −8 7
11 Dagenham & Redbridge U18s 10 1 3 6 15 24 −9 6
Source: soccerway.com
(C) Champions

Notes

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "U18 PREMIER LEAGUE". Soccerway. Retrieved 25 March 2017.
  2. ^ "Football League Youth Alliance". Soccerway. Retrieved 12 October 2024.
  NODES
Note 3