Colchester United F.C. Under-23s and Academy
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| Full name | Colchester United Football Club Under-23s and Academy |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | The U's |
| Ground | Florence Park, Tiptree Colchester Community Stadium |
| Capacity | 10,105 (Colchester Community Stadium) |
| Chairman | Robbie Cowling |
| Manager |
Wayne Brown (under-23s) Liam Bailey (caretaker) (under-18s) |
| League |
Professional U23 Development League League 2 South Division (under-23s) Professional U18 Development League League 2 South Division (under-18s) |
| 2016–17 |
Professional U21 Development League 2 South Division, 8th (under-23s) Professional U18 Development League League 2 South Division, 9th (under-18s) |
Colchester United Football Club Under-23s are the under-23 team of Colchester United Football Club. They play in the South Division of the Professional U21 Development League 2, the second tier of reserve football in England. The team mostly consists of the club's under-23 players, although senior players have occasionally made appearances for the side, for instance, during recovery from injury. The team are coached by Wayne Brown.
Colchester United Football Club Academy are the youth team of Colchester United Football Club. They play in the South Division of the Professional U18 Development League 2, the second tier of youth football in England. The team are coached by caretaker manager Liam Bailey.
The under-23 team play their home games at either the Colchester Community Stadium or the club's training ground, Florence Park in Tiptree. The under-18's also use Florence Park for their home matches.
Under Colchester United chairman Robbie Cowling's stewardship, the club put forward a planning application for a nine-hectare site for a new training ground based in the nearby village of Tiptree in 2009. Planning permission was granted in 2010 for the centre which cost £3.5 million. It was built to house a new academy and provide training facilities for all teams within the club.
Under the new Elite Player Performance Plan development scheme, Colchester United were first granted Category Two status for their academy in July 2012. The new system allowed greater contact time between the young players within the academy and the club's coaching staff. However, in August 2013, the club fell short of the required standard set by the EPPP by three percent, but the club secured Category Two status once more in June 2014 after operating with an increased academy budget during the 2013–14 season. During the 2013–14 season, the Colchester United under-18 side secured a league and cup double by winning the Football League Youth Alliance South East division and the national Youth Alliance Cup.
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