West Ham United’s Academy takes pride in the holistic and personal development of its young footballers, not just on the pitch, but off it too. As part of a half term day of education, the Player Care and Education department hosted 'Holistic Hammers', a range of physical and enrichment activities to conclude a month’s worth of Black History Month activations.
Players from West Ham’s U9s-U14s squads moved across the different stations in a carousel fashion, engaging in cricket lessons with Essex County Cricket Club and first-class bowler Jamie Porter, in honour of West Ham’s first black player Clyde Best, as well as workshops dedicated to celebrating the rich history of West Ham’s diverse talent pool of footballers.
As part of the day’s activities, author and charity ambassador Patrick Hutchinson was invited to Chadwell Heath to deliver a session on allyship. For Hutchinson, allyship is a deeply personal topic having had his own experience with discrimination from a young age. In 2020, he gained worldwide recognition and became an icon for the Black Lives Matter movement when a photo of him rescuing a counter-protester went viral.
“Coming into organisations like West Ham and talking about allyship is something that is really close to my heart,” Hutchinson said. “I was racially abused at a young age. It was always something that lived with me. Because of how it affected me, I like to speak on it. I think the best way to affect change is starting with the young people. Hopefully by the time they’re adults, we have a society that is much more understanding about our differences.
“Teaching them young is the key. Their behaviour patterns get formed when they’re young. Being exposed to different views in the classroom is essential in case they have negative role models at home."
Speaking on the strides made in education around equality and allyship, he continued: “We have definitely come a long way. These kinds of conversations weren’t happening when I was growing up, but there’s still so much more left to do. It shouldn’t just be left to football to figure out the problems in our society, but football carries a lot of weight, it’s the country’s biggest pastime so it needs to lead by example. As they say, we need to be the change that we want to see.”
The Academy players also heard from former West Ham scholar Daniel Jinadu. After signing his first professional contract with West Ham in 2020, Jinadu has since graduated with a first-class degree in Psychology, played for Barnsley in the EFL Championship and started his own podcast called ‘Beyond Football’. Now playing for Chesham in the National League South, the 22-year-old spoke to the young players about the importance of having an identity beyond the pitch and how it helped him forge a successful career away from football while still playing the sport that he loves.
Jinadu said: “Coming through the Academy system at West Ham, I got great support during my A-Levels, which helped me in my journey starting my degree alongside football. I’ve always known that there’s an important message. Growing up I’ve seen too many players not making something out of themselves beyond playing football. Coming through the Academy system, we had the right support structure and environment that helped us to focus on our education alongside football.
“The key message I try to get across is, ‘if you didn’t play football, who would you be’. Even if you don’t make it to the Premier League, you can become successful, because there are plenty of fulfilling careers beyond just playing.”
To learn more about the rich history of West Ham’s black players, Academy Link Mentor Rashid Abba delivered a session encouraging the young players to make an all-time West Ham starting XI. Through research into the lives and careers of past black players, the exercise taught young Hammers about the legacy and impact of black players who have shaped the Club’s history.
Abba said: “It’s very important for a Club like West Ham United and the tradition it’s had to deliver education days like these. We’ve had so many black players, past, present and coming through the Academy system too, so it’s important that we celebrate and embrace players from those communities.
“West Ham is in a unique place because east London is a very diverse place. It’s about embracing that and celebrating it every day.”
