by Hup Holland Hup »
21 Jan 2011 13:38
roadrunner McDermott pleased with Jacob loan
Posted on: Thu 20 Jan 2011
Young Jacob Walcott has joined Dutch team Telstar on loan until the end of the season.
The 18-year-old could make his debut for his new club on Friday evening as they take on FC Eindhoven in the Dutch second tier.
Walcott has come through our Academy ranks, and has now been given the opportunity to play overseas and further his career thanks to Brian McDermott's friendship with their manager Jan Poortvliet, who is a very well respected coach and also a key player in the Dutch 'total football' national team of the 1970s Johan Cruyff era.
McDermott told readingfc.co.uk, "This is a very good tie-up for us. Myself and Nick [Hammond] know Jan very well, he is a good friend of mine and stayed with me in my home a couple of years ago.
"He is a terrific coach, played in the 1978 World Cup final, won the UEFA Cup plus the Dutch league a number of times.
"I've got a lot of admiration for Jacob to go over there, he will play games and learn a hell of a lot, it will certainly benefit his career and it's a very positive move for him."
Sounds like a good loan for the boy. If he's half as good as his cousin then we have another great prospect on our hands here, and a wide man too which might be handy in the near future if we do lose Kebe and/or McAnuff. I'll monitor this move with interest.
I've got a couple of contacts at Telstar and will try to update you all on his progress. In principle it could be a good move for both Jacob and Telstar. As it stands, Telstar are struggling at the bottom end of the league with relagation being a real concern.
Telstar have a shabby little ground but a fantastic scoreboard. Well, when I say scoreboard, I mean a pole with 5 buckets attached to each side which are hoisted as and when the goals roll in
