Joey Jones reached the pinnacle of his sport when he won the European Cup in 1977 but he still describes his time in The FA Youth Cup as unforgettable – something he will be telling his Wrexham players ahead of their third qualifying round tie at Ossett Albion on Monday.
Jones’ fully committed displays during Liverpool’s run in European football’s premier club competition saw him become a cult figure at Anfield, resulting in the fans honouring him with the iconic banner reading: ‘Joey ate the frog legs, made the Swiss roll, now he’s munching Gladback’.
The 60-year-old is now imparting his knowledge to the rising stars of the club where he started and finished his career.
Ossett Albion v Wrexham
The FA Youth Cup
Third Round Qualifying
7pm, Monday 19 October 2015
Queens Terrace, Ossett
By Frank Smith
And the former left-back has held almost every role at Wrexham since his return in 1987 and he still has the same passion for the game, as he and Andy Davies manage the club’s youth team.
"Every year, I remind the players that you will always remember your FA Youth Cup games because I can still remember mine when I first started playing in the competition," said Jones, who also had spells at Chelsea and Huddersfield Town.
"The FA Youth Cup was very important to my development. When I first played in the competition as a 15 or 16-year-old at Wrexham, we were coming up against the likes of Birmingham City and Liverpool when Phil Thompson was playing for them and that is what you want to do; you want to pit your wits against the bigger clubs and see how you compare to their best players.
"Our opponents Ossett are clearly a good side as they are currently unbeaten this season and anything can happen in The FA Youth Cup, which we found out last year as we were beaten 2-0 by Ashton Athletic.
"We never take anyone for granted at this football club and that is something we breed into these players at a young age.
"I still love the game and my enjoyment now is when I see one or two of the young lads sign professionally and get through to the first team and help them all to play at as high a level as they can.
"And The FA Youth Cup is a great competition in helping to do that and long may it continue because it is a competition I still hold in such high regard."
Ossett’s Under-18s are currently unbeaten this season after six games in all competitions and top the Northern Alliance Central Division.
Boss Alex Thomas arrived at the club in June and a cornerstone of the team’s success is the overhaul of the squad in the summer, with a host of new faces arriving.
The 24-year-old may not have the experience of Wrexham’s coaching staff but has spent the last two years learning from former Manchester City and Derby County defender Paul Futcher, who Thomas assists at the Huddersfield New College Academy team.
"This is a fantastic chance for the players to showcase their talents against a full-time club," said Thomas, who works at the college as a sports activator.
"I’m 100 per cent confident we can cause an upset. Wrexham play in the same league as Grimsby Town. So if we can beat them 3-2 in the last round then there is no reason why we can’t beat Wrexham.
"I have a great group of players and this is the furthest the club have been in The FA Youth Cup before, so to set up a first round proper tie with Scunthorpe United would be a huge achievement for the players and the club as a whole."
