Walker to lead Wolves under-18s

Wolves have appointed former Stoke City coach Richard Walker as the club’s new under-18s lead professional development phase coach.

The former Crewe Alexandra and Port Vale defender joins Wolves on the back of 14 years coaching within Stoke’s youth set-up, spending the last eight working across the under-18 and under-21 groups.

Walker’s move to Wolves will see him lead the under-18s group, after James McPike guided the group on an interim basis during the second half of the season, following Steve Davis’ appointment as the club’s new pathways manager.

The Stafford-born defender boasts an impressive pedigree for coaching in academy football, having helped now Wolves defender Nathan Collins on his journey through the Stoke system, as well as the likes of Emre Tezgel and Tyrese Campbell.

Also, while working with the Potters’ under-18s, he guided them to the FA Youth Cup semi-final in 2017 and the Premier League Cup final the following year, with Manchester City overcoming them on both occasions.

As a player, Walker shared a pitch with under-21s head coach James Collins while at Crewe, who he also captained, and as a coach faced Davis’ Wolves under-18s side during his time at Stoke.

Now, he will begin his new role next month, assisted by McPike, and together they’ll look to build on another successful season for the academy, which saw the likes of Hugo Bueno, Dexter Lembikisa and Joe Hodge make their first-team debuts.

Jonathan Hunter-Barrett, Wolves Academy manager for football, said: “We wanted somebody who has a wealth of experience in managing under-18s football and progressing players to the next stage of their development. We also wanted somebody who understands football from a playing perspective, so could share their experiences and know what the players are going to face in the years to come.

“Richard was the outstanding candidate we interviewed. He’s been at Stoke for the last 14 years and worked across the foundation groups, all the way to the under-21s.”

Hunter-Barrett praised McPike for his work on an interim basis since October and believes that stability provided Wolves with the opportunity to ensure Davis’ successor was the correct candidate.

He said: “It was important to make sure we had the right person. It was mid-season and we felt like the lads needed to have some continuity at that point. James took it on the interim period while Steve had gone up to the first-team, and when Steve was given his new role, we thought we’d see the season out under James. Now, we’re putting somebody in who is ready to take us forward.

“It’s a really crucial role to build relationships across the whole of the academy, up to first-team level. It’s important to know what 15s and 16s we have, so we can easily transition players throughout the programme, as opposed to just thinking you have one group. Richard’s been at Stoke a long time, which shows he’s capable of providing longevity, and that is what we’re looking for with this role.”