QPR youth team graduates Max Ehmer, Tom Hitchcock and Frankie Sutherland talk to LFW about their career prospects and ambitions to progress into the first team at Loftus Road.
In 2005, then QPR manager Ian Holloway pulled aside a group of six young players from the club’s junior ranks and hailed them as Rangers’ future. A photo call was arranged at the club’s training ground and a special programme of extra training laid on for the group in order to fast track them into the first team as quickly as possible.
"If I can’t make a footballer out of one of these I may as well give up,” Holloway said. He appeared to be onto something: QPR still trained with Wasps in Acton at this point and the Premiership rugby players couldn’t help but stand and admire one afternoon as the QPR junior team ripped a Tottenham side apart with a display of power, pace and no little skill.
When I tell you that the six players were Shabazz Baidoo, Matthew Hislop, Dom Shimmin, Stefan Bailey, Scott Donnelly and Pat Kanyuka you realise how preposterous this all sounds now.
QPR have rarely had a problem producing successful youth teams. Steve Gallen and Marc Bircham oversaw league success for the Under 18s last season and there was a cup win for the age group above them the year before. In fact every season seems to end with an early summer trip to Loftus Road one weeknight to watch QPR’s youngsters lift another trophy of some sort.
What they haven’t been able to do, for more than a decade now, is progress young players into the first team. At all.
Southampton, themselves in financial trouble and in League One not so very long ago, have not only invested in their academy set up, but made sure there are clear pathways into the first team for the graduates from it. Adam Lallana made his England debut on Friday night and Luke Shaw and James Ward-Prowse will not be far behind. Gareth Bale, Theo Walcott, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and others have all come through the St Mary’s set up. In the same period of time QPR have only graduated Ray Jones to their first team, and even he was about to be flogged off cheaply to Colchester before his tragic death. A club that used to be able to turn to its junior set up for decent players like Kevin Gallen, Danny Dichio, Nigel Quashie, or going further back Gary Waddock, Alan McDonald, Paul Goddard and Clive Allen, has, give or take, only produced Richard Langley and Ray Jones in the last 15 years.
You could of course point to Dean Parrett and Raheem Sterling — pinched from the R’s by the bigger fish before they had a chance to pull on the Hoops for real — but it’s not exactly a long list is it?
Tony Fernandes has repeatedly stated his desire for QPR to bring through more home-grown talent and the club is working hard on its licensing position within the new national academy structure - the Warren Farm training ground development is obviously key to this. He could point to Tom Hitchcock’s match winning cameo against Ipswich, and an impressive appearance from Max Ehmer against Middlesbrough, as a sign of progress. But when faced with injuries, QPR are still far more likely to add Javier Chevanton and Oguchi Onyewu than turn to their junior teams. So does that belief exist among the younger pros at the club that there is an opportunity here for them?
Frankie Sutherland joined QPR when he was nine having been spotted playing for Ruislip Rangers. He’s been with the club ever since, progressing through several successful youth teams to a pre-season friendly against Udinese this summer where he marched through on the goal and scored for the first team for the very first time. Now aged 19, he’s a cultured player, handy with a dead ball, with an eye for a pass.
"The main goal is to play for QPR week in week out and do as well as I possibly can. I’m desperate to play for QPR” Sutherland says.
"I have to believe the opportunity is there. That's what drives you on every day. I wouldn't be training every day, working as hard as I could, if I didn't believe I could get the opportunity. Obviously I’ve been delighted to see Max and Tom get their chance and Tom scoring was fantastic. I've got to take that, look at myself, always work harder than I did the day before and hopefully get my opportunity and take it.”
That summer in Austria looked like it could be the making of the Republic of Ireland youth international at Loftus Road. He certainly didn’t look out of place and a pre-season spent being trained by former England manager Steve McClaren moved his development along apace.
"Working with Steve McClaren was brilliant,” Sutherland says. "He taught the young lads a lot and helped us to progress. That was really good for me, I needed that. One of the main things Steve brought was positivity and a fresh face. We’d come from a difficult season into the pre-season he brought positive energy and feel good factor straight away. He changed things quite a lot, he was very positive when he was here and he improved the squad and gave us a kick start to the season which is what we needed and you’ve seen the effect in the early part of the season.
"As a youngster, when you train with the first team you want to give everything, do everything at 100 miles an hour, be the best you can be - he took me out of that, slowed everything down, focused on my positioning and showed me technical and tactical skills. It was great knowledge for me and I think it's improved me as a player, I really enjoyed working with him.
"Working with Harry is brilliant as well. His CV, taking Tottenham to the Champions League, managing people like Gareth Bale, he's been really good. What I like about him is you can go and speak to him and he will just tell you honestly what he thinks.”
Sutherland has also been a regular with the Republic of Ireland youth teams, from Under 17 level up to the Under 21s this season.
"I really enjoy it,” he says. "In England everything is 100 miles an hour with tackles flying in - you go to different countries, have the different experiences and it opens your mind. Fingers crossed QPR can get into European football at some point. When you go to those different places, with different refereeing styles, it’s an eye opener. If you ever get the opportunity for those situations you have to grasp them.”
For Sutherland though, that first team bow at Rangers remains elusive. Max Ehmer, a muscular German-born midfielder-come-centre-back has made that step this season. Against Middlesbrough at Loftus Road in September an injury to centre back Clint Hill a quarter of an hour from the end of the game, with Nedum Onuoha already out with a hamstring injury, plunged 21-year-old Ehmer into a taxing debut. Rangers were defending a two goal lead and Boro had sent on hulking Polish forward Lucas Jutkiewicz — one of the division’s most physical strikers. Ehmer seemed to relish the physical battle - literally an arm wrestle on several occasions under a high ball - and didn’t look out of place.
"It was all a bit rushed,” Ehmer says. "I had to put all my kit on, I had no time to think about what was going to happen. I got changed and got straight on. You're just focused, it's like any other game. I really enjoyed it, it was great to get my first appearance, at home especially, and get the clean sheet as well. Jutkiewicz was a big boy, but Karl Henry came on and sat in front so it was nice that he could protect us there. I think I can deal with that side of the game, he was a challenge but I was alright.”
Ehmer moved to this country when he was three because of his father’s work commitments. He joined QPR following a trial when he was 11 and having come through the system as a central midfield player was converted to centre half by Neil Warnock.
"I played Under 18 football at centre mid, then in my first or second year as a pro I changed into a centre back,” Ehmer says. "Neil Warnock pushed it more. I’d played a couple of games in the youth team as a centre back, but I was still playing central midfield more, and then from there I played centre half for the reserves. I enjoy it. Sometimes I miss playing in midfield. It's a different game, you have to get on the ball quite a lot more.
"Football was all I wanted to do when I was young but when you're 11 you don't really think you can make a career from this. At 15 or 16 when you're looking for your first scholarship that's when you start thinking about it and take it a lot more seriously - it screws your head on a bit more. The boys who got released it's not nice for them but that's the game. It's harsh.”
And Tom Hitchcock went one better than that. Sent on for the ailing Bobby Zamora seven minutes from time against Ipswich at Loftus Road in August he was in the right place at the right time to snaffle a last second chance to win the match 1-0 at the Loft End.
"It was a great moment, I've dreamed about it all my life,” Hitchcock says. "At first everything was a blur, everybody was texting me and ringing me and my phone was going off. I sat down at home and watched it again and it started sinking in. It was straight back to normal, I was sitting at home reading the papers and thinking ‘wow this is real,’ but I had to get my head down and keep working hard. I really want to get involved again, get another chance and take it again.”
Hitchcock has been on fire for the club’s EDS team this season, scoring a hat trick against AFC Wimbledon and bagging a thumping header after just nine seconds of a recent game against Cardiff at Harlington.
It’s helped him brush aside any doubts that he is only at the club because his father — former Chelsea goalkeeper Kevin — is at Loftus Road as a coach. Hitchcock Snr and Jnr were previously together at Blackburn Rovers so a cynic could easily wonder whether nepotism had anything to do with Tom’s presence at QPR.
"I had the same thing at Blackburn when I was younger. When I first came to QPR I was really nervous about what people would think but the lads got to know me and it's all gone well,” he says. "I'm happy to be where I am right now, I love being here, it's a great club and I want to play more games for QPR.
"When I was younger I was at Watford. I was 12 when I moved up to Blackburn where it was much tougher, a lot of tackles flying in. Blackburn didn't see me progressing into their first team, I’d been there for seven years and it was time to move on. It was tough because I'd been there since I was 12, all my mates were Blackburn fans, I went to school in Blackburn, I wanted to play in their first team but it didn't happen. The confidence was low when I left and came here, I've had to build it back again and getting in the first team here has really helped.
"Harry always pulls us to the side and gives us advice, he's very helpful with us. Together Harry, Joe and Kevin work really well, you can tell with where we are in the league, it's really good to work under them.”
The fact remains though that as a young player at QPR, you’re far more likely to play your first team football out on loan than in the blue and white hoops.
Ehmer has previously spent a year with Yeovil, had spells with Stevenage and Preston under Graham Westley, and since this interview has signed for League One Carlisle United temporarily. It’s a steady stream of going into new clubs in new towns, meeting new players and having to impress immediately. Potentially unsettling, but a necessary evil for young players looking to make the breakthrough.
"I was at Yeovil for a year, all of 2011, and the first week or so it's different because you're like the new kid at school, but you get used to it,” Ehmer says. "You just want to play football. I enjoyed all the spells because I played everywhere, I was at Yeovil for a whole season so I really enjoyed that.
"All managers are different: the gaffer here is good; Graham Westley who I had at Stevenage and Preston is more of a physical, gym focused manager, he's obviously into his football but a lot of it is based on the physical side of the game; Terry Skiverton my manager at Yeovil liked to pass the ball; the gaffer here likes to pass it and Mark Hughes was a bit of both. I've worked under so many managers, it’s good experience.”
Hitchcock scored three times in seven starts and ten substitute appearances for Bristol Rovers last season and is desperate to get out and play games again.
"I loved it at Bristol,” he says. "It was a real confidence boost - I got some goals there and some minutes. It's a tough league. I'd love to go out on loan again - there are a lot of players in this squad, it's tough to get into, I need to play first team football and get more experience, and see if I can score more goals.”
Harry Redknapp is holding out for a higher League One, or lower end Championship club for Hitchcock. If you’re looking for signs of progress then the calibre of club taking QPR’s juniors on loan is certainly that — in the very recent past Rangers struggled to place anybody above Conference South. Michael Doughty is currently with Stevenage, and Michael Harriman with Gillingham following a season long loan at Wycombe.
The tragic story is Sutherland’s however. A loan spell at Portsmouth last season brought only one substitute appearance, thanks to a sudden change of club policy shortly after he’d arrived there. He spoke to LFW about his desperation to get out on loan somewhere again and secured a move to Leyton Orient shortly after the interview but ruptured his cruciate knee ligaments 38 minutes into his debut against Southport in the FA Cup last week and is now out for the season.
It’s a tough break for the young man —intelligent, articulate and focused but seemingly terminally unlucky.
"It was difficult at Portsmouth,” he admits. "I came away from that learning a lot. The first day I went there we got changed at the stadium, ate there, then went to a public field at a university, trained in a bog, there were people around shouting abuse. It was good for me but I was disappointed I didn't play more.
"First of all I was going there when Michael Appleton was the manager and it didn't happen in time, it was the last day of the window and it didn't go through. Then Guy Whittingham took me - I went there, I made my first appearance, then he had a meeting with the chairman who said he wanted the young players who Pompey had coming through to be the ones progressing into the first team. I felt I could have helped them to win games.
"Going out on loan is where you grow. It's difficult, but that's where you grow into a man, through the difficult experiences. A lot of football is not nice and pretty. You go to difficult away games on a Tuesday night and you know if you've gone into different places with different people you can come out of it in a good way. You go to these grounds where you take abuse, it's a good learning curve.
"I want a sustained amount of games somewhere, knowing I'm going to play every week. Anybody can knock on the gaffer's door and say I want to play but there's only so much you can do in training. A massive thing is the level of trust: as a manager are you going to play a lad who you’ve never seen before in front of a crowd? As a young lad I need to go out there, prove I can do it on a Saturday in front of a crowd, consistently over a sustained amount of time, then come back and say I'm desperate to play.”
LFW, along with QPRNet and WATRBs, were invited to Harlington to speak with the boys by the club’s media team as part of ongoing collaboration between the club and its unofficial sites and message boards and as part of the media training for the young players at QPR. We wish to thank Ian Taylor and Paul Morrissey for their help in setting this up.
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Pictures — Action Images