The youngsters who have joined the Hammers academy are:
Olanrewaju Awesu, Majid Balogun, Lewis Beckford, David Chigwada, Andre Dike, Airidas Golambeckis, Finley Hooper, Aaron Kamara, Chinaza Nwosu and Jonathan Unwin.
Two huge names out of the ten are Balogun and Chigwada who were previously at the Manchester United and Manchester City Academies respectively and could prove to be huge talents in the future.
Academy Manager Kenny Brown said that the new intake of scholars each summer was a proud and exciting time for everyone associated with the Academy.
“Our annual induction evening for our new scholars is a celebration of these players,” Academy Manager Brown, who served his own scholarship at Norwich City in the 1980s, explained. “I think that when they first come in and start playing football, the incentive is that you want to become a scholar. Some of these boys started their journeys with us at Under-9s, so they have come all the way through the system and have reached a big milestone and signing a scholarship.
“They’ve definitely earned it. It’s a big achievement, but it is also a celebration for the player and their families, as they have worked extremely hard and shown a lot of dedication over a long period of time.
“This is their job now. There are a lot more eyes on them as they are here full-time, but they are going to love these next two years. Looking back on my time as a scholar, they were the best two years of my life. We have got fantastic staff here, so we’re here to support them, guide them, and let’s see how far each one of them can go.”
Brown spoke more on the resilience needed if these youngsters want to make it far:
“There will be challenges along the way such as lack of form, not being in the team, being injured and other circumstances away from the pitch in their personal lives, but I am completely convinced that we have the staff here that will help and support them in every way.”
“We understand these days and moments are great to build resilience for what is going to be needed going forward if they are going to have any longevity in the game.”