SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND - MAY 18: Players of Sheffield Wednesday celebrate during the penalty shoot-out during the Sky Bet League One Play-Off Semi-Final Second Leg match between Sheffield Wednesday and Peterborough United at Hillsborough on May 18, 2023 in Sheffield, England. (Photo by Matt McNulty/Getty Images)

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Sheffield Wednesday’s under-18 side have announced the signing of a new addition to their promising stable of young goalkeepers, with former Leicester City stopper Charlie Hobbs having joined the club to become one of six first year scholars at Middlewood Road.

Talented youngster Daniel Da Costa will make the step up to under-18 level on a formal basis along with Aodhan Sopala, Liam Clayton, Kailen Hatfield and Jacob Jessop.

The new face is that of Hobbs, who will take on the challenge of following in the footsteps of goalkeeper starlets Pierce Charles and Jack Hall, both who have achieved international recognition during their time in the Owls youth ranks.

Academy coach Andy Sharp said: “It’s a small group we’ve brought in so that’s a little bit different but it’s nice because other than Charlie who has come in and joined the group, most of the lads have already been in and around the 18s last season.

In that respect it has been an easy transition because they are already familiar with everything, the standards, the staff and the programme.”

Wednesday’s youngsters have enjoyed a positive pre-season programme, Sharp says, and are looking forward to kicking off their campaign against Millwall on Saturday. The match is a 3pm kick-off and will be played at Middlewood Road.

“This has allowed us to hit the ground running, we have already got that relationship built and we aim to progress players, develop players and a big part of that initially is about developing a strong relationship with them. As that is already done, the transition has been very smooth.

“We’ve had a really good summer, we spent time at Queen Ethelburga’s in York where the facilities are fantastic and we got through some really good work.

The lads really benefited from a full and detailed programme while we were there. We’ve tried to give the boys a range of different experiences over the summer, different challenges in friendly games against opposition they wouldn’t usually play.

He continued: “We’re at the stage now where enough is enough, the boys want to get going in terms of the competitive league and cup games, so yes we are looking forward to it.

I can never remember an easy game against Millwall, whether it’s home or away. We’ve told the boys today to expect a very tough start on Saturday.”

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