Our Best Starting XI

[The Johnson]

We do not want to ruin Byram, who is arguable our best prospect

It often assists the development of a youngster to play them in various positions.

Really? From all of my experience as a 'developing youngster' I would have to wholeheartedly disagree.

[isrodger]

We do not want to ruin Byram, who is arguable our best prospect

It often assists the development of a youngster to play them in various positions.

Really? From all of my experience as a 'developing youngster' I would have to wholeheartedly disagree.

I digress a little but at what point do you stop the development stage. I take junior football @ under 10's/11's/12's etc when do you start rigidly playing a lad in his position. Does game time @ centre forward give you a better appreciation of how to upset 'yourself' as a centre back??

[SMorientes]

I digress a little but at what point do you stop the development stage. I take junior football @ under 10's/11's/12's etc when do you start rigidly playing a lad in his position.

I reckon you don't stop the developing stage until you're in your mid-to-late-20s when you peak. Most players have found their best position by about 18 though. But that 'best position' can go on to change of course as your body develops, as your skills develop in different ways. There are tonnes of examples of players changing position mid-way through their career. It's very dependant upon the player himself as to whether you should experiment or try moving him about to use him elsewhere, there's no hard-and-fast rule. McDermott will know far better than any of us what'll be best for Byram in this respect.

Does game time @ centre forward give you a better appreciation of how to upset 'yourself' as a centre back??

I think it does actually; I'm a winger, but have been asked to play at the back when needed before, and when you're marking someone who's giving you a tough time, it can give you ideas of how to inflict the same on opposition defenders when back in your main role that you mightn't otherwise have thought of, or might not have realised how much it can bother the defender.
I'm not suggesting players be playing in opposite positions at a young age though. Perhaps it might help in training matches, but I don't think it's a good idea in competitive games. Not because it would not be beneficial, but because it would be detrimental to the team's performance to use a proper game as your learning method.

[Pecky10]

It might be just me but if this is about our best available starting XI, then on the basis that Byram can't actually run at the moment, let alone kick a ball, he shouldn't be included in any position other than on the physio's couch....

If we're talking about our best starting XI, irrespective of availability, we might as well include Matt Mills at centre-half

[SMorientes]

It might be just me but if this is about our best available starting XI, then on the basis that Byram can't actually run at the moment, let alone kick a ball, he shouldn't be included in any position other than on the physio's couch....

If we're talking about our best starting XI, irrespective of availability, we might as well include Matt Mills at centre-half

Just read on the YEP that Byram is taking to the training fields today so that his fitness can be assessed before they make a decision. Maybe we'll hear today or tomorrow what the result is, but it sounds like he might be running a bit, albeit slightly gingerly.

[The Don]

We do not want to ruin Byram, who is arguable our best prospect

It often assists the development of a youngster to play them in various positions.

Really? From all of my experience as a 'developing youngster' I would have to wholeheartedly disagree.

I digress a little but at what point do you stop the development stage. I take junior football @ under 10's/11's/12's etc when do you start rigidly playing a lad in his position. Does game time @ centre forward give you a better appreciation of how to upset 'yourself' as a centre back??

Agree with what's been said so far. Johan Cruyff once said: "Football is a game you play with your brain".If you want to play a fluid system then players need to have an understanding of various positions to make it work, so from the aspect of Total Football http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Total_Football the experience of playing in a different position is never wasted.

Mostly being played somewhere else is to develop an aspect of your game you may have a weakness in or could be useful to the position you normally play in that you might not necessarily develop/train in your natural position. If you are predominantly right footed you may get played on the left flank to develop your left foot, if you are a winger that can't head or tackle you might get played in central defence to give you more practice in those skills.

[The Don]

We do not want to ruin Byram, who is arguable our best prospect

It often assists the development of a youngster to play them in various positions.

Really? From all of my experience as a 'developing youngster' I would have to wholeheartedly disagree.

Most kids don't make it through the youth system so if you are saying you aren't responding to stimulus then that's a bad sign isn't it? I never met a youth player that knew more about football than the manager or the coach either. Temperament is just as important as talent, lack of both won't get you anywhere in the professional game.

[cadillacjukebox]

It doesn't work for everyone, but in 11 a side football I played the following positions (both as a kid growing up, and as an old buffoon when I should have known better):

Goalkeeper (only 5ft 7, but still awesome)
Right back (right footed, used to be quick)
Sweeper (behind a big lad)
Left Back (when I was 6 my granddad said I should learn to play with my left foot, because there were no left wingers in football anymore - he was in his late 80's then) - so I learned to volley the ball against the wall and kick solely with my left foot, so that I can play on either side.
Right midfield
Left midfield
(I was too violent to play centre mid, unless it was to man-mark someone)
Centre forward (normally with a big lad alongside) - I used to enjoy pulling the centre backs wide, and then kicking them (a lot, which they didn't expect)

So even with my meagre talents, a player can learn to adapt. At the end of the day, if you want to play football, then you play where the manager needs you to play - what's so hard?

[The Don]

It doesn't work for everyone, but in 11 a side football I played the following positions (both as a kid growing up, and as an old buffoon when I should have known better):

Goalkeeper (only 5ft 7, but still awesome)
Right back (right footed, used to be quick)
Sweeper (behind a big lad)
Left Back (when I was 6 my granddad said I should learn to play with my left foot, because there were no left wingers in football anymore - he was in his late 80's then) - so I learned to volley the ball against the wall and kick solely with my left foot, so that I can play on either side.
Right midfield
Left midfield
(I was too violent to play centre mid, unless it was to man-mark someone)
Centre forward (normally with a big lad alongside) - I used to enjoy pulling the centre backs wide, and then kicking them (a lot, which they didn't expect)

So even with my meagre talents, a player can learn to adapt. At the end of the day, if you want to play football, then you play where the manager needs you to play - what's so hard?

Laugh that gave me a chuckle when you talked about kicking defenders. 5ft 6 myself and as a kid was played in goal (it's not going to make me grow for cripes sake!)

[SiMamu]

It doesn't work for everyone, but in 11 a side football I played the following positions (both as a kid growing up, and as an old buffoon when I should have known better):

Goalkeeper (only 5ft 7, but still awesome)
Right back (right footed, used to be quick)
Sweeper (behind a big lad)
Left Back (when I was 6 my granddad said I should learn to play with my left foot, because there were no left wingers in football anymore - he was in his late 80's then) - so I learned to volley the ball against the wall and kick solely with my left foot, so that I can play on either side.
Right midfield
Left midfield
(I was too violent to play centre mid, unless it was to man-mark someone)
Centre forward (normally with a big lad alongside) - I used to enjoy pulling the centre backs wide, and then kicking them (a lot, which they didn't expect)

So even with my meagre talents, a player can learn to adapt. At the end of the day, if you want to play football, then you play where the manager needs you to play - what's so hard?

#DirtyLeeds

You would've been a proper central midfielder then, kicking the little playmaker in the shins when he tried to pull the strings. Or did you take out the flair wingers when you were on the flanks? Tell them what would happen if they kept on trying that 'skill' thing that young players seemed obsessed with today.