Derrick Williams
The Republic of Ireland U19 international's form also propelled him to the fringes of the first team. In fact, Williams was named on the bench for Barclays Premier League games against Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool. Operating either as a central defender or a left-back, he appeared 20 times for the title-winning second string side as well as playing in all but one of Villa's matches in the new European NextGen tournament. His only goal of the campaign came in a 3-2 defeat against Norwegian outfit Rosenborg in Trondheim. In 2010-11, Williams made massive strides in the centre of defence for Villa's youth team. He took his partnership with compatriot Daniel Devine to another level as Tony McAndrew's team surged to the top of the Academy league table with the best defensive record over the 28-game season. As well as featuring in every round of the FA Youth Cup, as Villa exited at the semi-final stage to Sheffield United, 2010-11 was the season where Williams made a significant step into the reserve team ranks. The man from County Waterford appeared as a substitute in the first two games of the second string season - a 2-0 defeat at Manchester City and a 4-0 win over Blackpool. But his finest moment came when the claret and blues crushed Manchester United 4-1 at Altrincham. Williams moved across to left-back and succeeded in marking United's Portuguese summer signing Bebe out of the contest. He also helped shut out Arsenal in a superb 2-0 away win in November. Williams also played in every round of the 2009-10 FA Youth Cup as Villa beat Rochdale, West Brom, Millwall, Fulham and Newcastle en route to the final before losing to Chelsea over two legs. |
