Emyr Humphreys spoke to HTTV about his new role at Huddersfield Town
- Emyr Humphreys starts role as Town’s Academy Manager
- Humphreys discussed a pathway to the First Team & COVID-19
- Watch the full interview for free on #HTTV
Emyr Humphreys started his new role as Academy Manager at Huddersfield Town on Wednesday 6 May 2020.
Humphreys, who has been a big part of the Academy staff for six years, has now stepped into the role as Leigh Bromby has become the Club’s new Head of Football Operations.
In his previous role as Town’s Head of Academy Recruitment, he played a key role in the strategic direction of Town’s Academy alongside Bromby, recruiting a completely new set of scholars from around the country and beyond.
When speaking to #HTTV about his new role, he explained how passionate he is about the strategic direction of Town’s Academy.
“For me, it’s not just the matter of being an Academy Manager, which has been a long-term aim of mine, but the crucial thing is that the opportunity came to do it at Huddersfield Town.
“This Academy model is something that I believe in really passionately and I completely believe we can create a legacy here as a club that’s brave enough to think differently, not follow the crowd, and be a flagship for a different way of operating an Academy, which I find really exciting.
“Recognising potential in young people and helping them recognise that has always been something that excites me, so I’m looking forward to building on what Leigh’s (Bromby) put in place over the last few years and driving the Academy forward.
“If I’m honest it’s probably come slightly sooner than I was expecting, but when the opportunity came up, I had to grab it and make the most of it.
“This is a club that means a lot to me and has shown a lot of faith in me, so I’ll do everything in my power to pay that back.”
Having worked closely with Bromby since re-joining the Club in August 2018 from Manchester United, Emyr explained how much he’s learned off Town’s new Head of Football Operations.
“More recently we’ve had a handover period of a few months, which has been invaluable for me. But in truth, Leigh has been giving me exposure to the role of the last two years.
“When Leigh was having to continue with his coaching role in the Academy at that time, I was lucky that he allowed me to get involved with the strategical and managerial parts of the job. I was exposed to heading up meetings and other parts of the role I wouldn’t normally have access to; I’m really grateful for that.
“That’s given me a great insight and allowed me to learn loads from him and other senior staff at the Club, which has put me in a good place.”
Humphreys is excited for the future of Town’s Academy, detailing how the pathway from being a Young Terrier to a Terrier is as clear as it’s ever been before.
“It’s all about alignment throughout the Club; that goes from the staff and the players. The biggest thing I’ve learned during my time in football is how important it is for clubs to have a joined-up approach and everyone pulling in the same direction.
“You see at other clubs all the time where Academy teams are playing a completely different styles to the First Team and have no connection whatsoever, which it makes it unnecessarily hard for young players to make the transition into the First Team.
“Leigh being in that role should be a massive boost to all the Academy players, it shows the Club want to be joined up, want to be one club, want to develop individuals; players and staff. It’s a really exciting time to be a young person at this club.
“We speak to the staff all the time here about wanting to be the best club in the country at that transition; from the Academy into the First Team, which is something I truly believe we can do over the next few years.
“I know how good this group of young players here is, I know what Danny (Cowley’s) philosophy is and what Leigh’s skillset is in making that happen.”
You can watch the full interview below on #HTTV!
