Palace’s Academy’s best moments of 2023

Academy

31 Dec 2023

As 2023 is drawing to a close, we take a look back at the top five moments in a standout year for the Crystal Palace Academy on and off the pitch.

5. Exceptional results

With 100s of goals flying in over a multitude of fixtures, Crystal Palace Under-18s and Under-21s have had some exceptional results in the calendar year.

For the U18s, during the run-in of the 2022/23 campaign, they faced a tough test against reigning U18 Premier League South champions Southampton away from home. The side took the lead early through a well-struck Hindolo Mustapha effort and never looked back.

The goals kept on coming as Palace utterly dominated the Saints on their own turf. Asher Agbinone, David Obou, Franco Umeh and a hat-trick from Zach Marsh saw them hit seven past them in an emphatic victory.

U18 Match Highlights: Southampton 1-7 Palace

Halfway through the 2023/24 campaign, Rob Quinn’s side have had some incredible results - most notably the 5-4 win against Fulham in the U18 Premier League Cup. Needing a win to guarantee qualification for the knockout stage, the side raced into a 2-0 lead early on with goals from Marsh and Jesse Derry.

They were then pegged back and then found themselves 2-4 down in the second-half. It looked as though their campaign was over, but a quickfire double 15 minutes from time, which saw Marsh complete a fifth hat-trick of the campaign, before a 94th minute winner from George King sent them through to the quarter-finals with a 5-4 win.

U18 Premier League Cup Highlights: Palace 5-4 Fulham

For the U21s, a crucial result for Darren Powell’s side was the 3-0 win away at Manchester City in the Premier League 2 at the end of the year.

A totally dominant display from start to finish against the reigning champions, with goals from Roshaun Mathurin, Danny Imray and Umeh saw the side push into the top half of the table.

U21 Match Highlights: Manchester City 0-3 Crystal Palace

A standout result for the U21s earlier in 2023 was the 2-1 win against Sporting Clube de Braga in the Premier League International Cup group stage. After going a goal down early on, the Eagles were on the brink of being knocked out as it stood.

They drew level through Seán Grehan, but a draw wouldn’t have been enough to see them into the knockout phase. The side kept plugging away in a cagey affair, before captain Jack Wells-Morrison won it right at the death in the fourth minute of stoppage time.

U21 Match Highlights: Crystal Palace 2-1 SC Braga

4. The Premier League International Cup run

The win against SC Braga capped off a fantastic group stage campaign which saw Palace register a 1-0 win over Hertha Berlin in their first game of the competition and also record an iconic 7-3 victory against Paris Saint-Germain back in 2022.

In March 2023, the Eagles travelled to Liverpool in the quarter-finals, edging them out by a goal to nil. A nail-biting semi-final encounter with Valencia ended 1-1 in normal time, before a 5-3 penalty shootout victory saw Palace progress into the final.

Powell’s side faced PSV in the final, but it ultimately wasn’t to be. A stunning strike from the returning Scott Banks wasn’t enough as the Dutch outfit emerged victorious after extra-time.

Nevertheless, the club’s run in the tournament - after competing in it for the first time in their history - will always be remembered by all the players and staff involved.

3. New Contracts and scholars

Not a moment as such, but 2023 has seen over 30 different contracts, extensions and scholarships earned by various players across the age groups at the Academy. Each and every player has worked hard to earn their respective contract or scholarship, both on the pitch and off the pitch.

The new scholars form the basis of the Under-18s side, among them are: the in-form Jesse Derry, who has nine goals and five assists in 11 games this season and George King, a centre-back who has five goals in 12 games so far.

Players that have earned their first professional contracts in 2023 include defenders Jake Grante, Mofe Jemide and Caleb Kporha -all of whom featured for the Under-21s in pre-season.

Among those who earned extensions include loanees Killian Phillips and Scott Banks, as well as the in-form Zach Marsh and Joe Whitworth who went on to make his Premier League debut.

2. Debutants

Indeed, Whitworth’s Premier League debut came a month after signing a contract extension and it was against none other than fierce rivals Brighton & Hove Albion. He also featured at the Emirates Stadium a week later against Arsenal.

Whitworth was one of two debutants in 2023 for Palace, with midfielder David Ozoh being the other.

The midfielder made history when, on January 21st, 2023, he appeared for the final four minutes of Palace's 0-0 draw against Newcastle United, becoming the club's youngest-ever Premier League player at the age of 17 years, eight months and 15 days.

1. Continued progress

The calendar year saw the club conclude a third season as a Category 1 Academy and being a fourth in earnest. The U21s recorded a fourth place finish in the league, along with the aforementioned International Cup run, to round off an incredible 42-game season.

Palace’s U18s also recorded a third successive top-three finish in the U18 Premier League South, with first-year scholars earning a significant amount of game time and others playing above their age group with the U21s.

Both sides have gone on to progress strongly in 23/24, and with developments off the pitch including the completion of the final wing of the complex - the future is bright for the Academy.

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