Newcastle United have announced the appointment of Graeme Carrick as the club's new U18s coach. The younger brother of former England and Manchester United star Michael will take up the vacant post in the Magpies academy in what has been labelled a 'significant' hire.
The pair were both born in Wallsend, and Graeme joined his brother in West Ham's youth setup before injury ended his hopes of becoming a professional footballer. The 37-year-old has previously worked in a part-time coaching role with Newcastle from 2005 until 2007, before spending 15 years working as a coach developer with the FA.
Carrick will take the U18s post previously held by Peter Ramage, with the former Magpies defender now assisting Shola Ameobi as the club's player loan co-ordinator. Academy boss Steve Harper has revealed his delight at the appointment, insisting the new coach's 'passion' for developing players on and off the pitch earned him the role.
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Carrick told the club's website: "I'm absolutely delighted. I worked part-time for the club 15 years ago and I always hoped I'd come back one day. Being from the area, I understand the privilege and responsibility of the job and it's such a special club so I can't wait to start.
"I've had a brilliant time at the FA over the 15 years and I'm certainly appreciative of the opportunities and experiences gained but I think I'm ready for a fresh challenge. When the opportunity came up with Newcastle, it seemed like the perfect timing and the perfect next step for me.
"During my job at the FA, I'd been lucky enough to work with a lot of coaches and people within the club and I have seen the positive direction the Academy is heading which is something I want to be a part of. I'm particularly looking forward to being out on the grass, working with players everyday and I'll give absolutely everything in trying to help them realise their potential both as footballers but also, as importantly, young people.
"The short-term aim is making sure to improve the programme for the players and helping them to progress everyday and every week, individually and collectively. Longer term, it's striving to deliver a high quality programme whilst contributing, along with the rest of staff, towards making the Academy better."
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