2015–16 Professional U21 Development League

The 2015–16 Professional U21 Development League is the fourth season of the Professional Development League system.

League 1

Barclays U21 Premier League
Season2015–16
ChampionsManchester United U21s
Division 2
Derby County U21s
PromotedDerby County U21s
Arsenal U21s
RelegatedMiddlesbrough U21s
Norwich City U21s
Matches played267
(264 RS, 3 PO)
Goals scored788 (2.95 per match)
(778 RS, 10 PO)
Top goalscorerStephy Mavididi Arsenal U21s (13 goals)
Biggest home win Manchester United U21s 7–0 Norwich City U21s
(8 February 2016)
Biggest away winLeicester City U21s 1–6 Sunderland U21s
(2 November 2015)
Norwich City U21s 0–5 Middlesbrough U21s
(17 November 2015)
Liverpool U21s 0–5 Southampton U21s
(20 March 2016)
Highest scoringTottenham Hotspur U21s 7–4 Leicester City U21s
(21 September 2015)
Longest winning run6 Matches Manchester United U21s
Longest unbeaten run7 Matches Arsenal U21s,
Aston Villa U21s,
Swansea City U21s
Longest winless run19 Matches Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s
Longest losing run5 Matches Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s
Highest attendance9,278 Norwich City U21s 0–0 Liverpool U21s
(21 December 2015)
Lowest attendance20 Everton U21s 2–2 Middlesbrough U21s
(17 March 2016)

League 1, referred to as the Barclays Under 21 Premier League for sponsorship reasons, was split into two divisions, with teams allocated places in Division 1 or 2 based on their performance in the 2014–15 season.

At the end of the season, the team which finished top of Division 1 was crowned as overall League 1 champions, and the bottom two teams in Division 1 will be relegated to Division 2 for the 2016–17 season.[1]

Division 1

Table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Manchester United U21s (C) 22 15 3 4 44 19 +25 48
2 Sunderland U21s 22 13 4 5 38 20 +18 43
3 Everton U21s 22 10 7 5 35 27 +8 37
4 Manchester City EDS 22 10 4 8 35 26 +9 34
5 Chelsea U21s 22 9 6 7 34 30 +4 33
6 Southampton U21s 22 8 6 8 39 40 −1 30
7 Liverpool U21s 22 8 4 10 26 37 −11 28
8 Tottenham Hotspur U21s 22 7 6 9 44 43 +1 27
9 Reading U21s 22 7 6 9 34 40 −6 27
10 Leicester City U21s 22 6 3 13 25 48 −23 21
11 Middlesbrough U21s (R) 22 5 5 12 33 37 −4 20 Relegation to 2016–17 U23 Premier League Division 2
12 Norwich City U21s (R) 22 5 4 13 30 50 −20 19
Updated to match(es) played on 12 May 2016. Source: [2][3]
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated

Results

Home \ Away CHE EVE LEI LIV MNC MNU MID NOR REA SOT SUN TOT
Chelsea U21s 0–0 2–1 4–0 0–2 0–1 1–0 5–0 3–3 1–3 1–3 1–3
Everton U21s 2–0 3–1 3–3 1–0 2–0 2–2 3–1 0–2 3–1 1–1 1–1
Leicester City U21s 3–0 1–1 0–2 1–0 1–1 1–1 0–1 2–1 2–1 1–6 0–3
Liverpool U21s 0–1 1–3 2–1 0–3 1–1 2–1 2–1 2–0 0–5 0–2 2–0
Manchester City EDS 0–1 0–1 1–3 2–0 1–0 5–1 1–0 3–1 3–1 1–1 3–3
Manchester United U21s 1–1 3–1 6–1 1–0 1–0 1–0 7–0 1–0 4–0 1–0 3–1
Middlesbrough U21s 1–3 1–0 4–0 2–3 3–1 1–2 1–1 1–1 1–3 0–1 1–2
Norwich City U21s 2–2 1–2 2–0 0–0 1–2 2–0 0–5 4–4 7–2 0–2 2–3
Reading U21s 1–3 1–1 1–0 2–1 0–3 1–3 3–2 2–0 2–5 2–1 1–1
Southampton U21s 0–0 0–2 3–1 1–2 2–2 2–1 1–1 3–2 1–1 0–2 1–1
Sunderland U21s 0–0 3–2 0–1 1–0 3–0 0–1 3–2 3–1 2–1 2–2 1–0
Tottenham Hotspur U21s 4–5 4–1 7–4 1–1 2–2 2–3 1–2 1–2 1–4 0–2 3–1
Updated to match(es) played on 29 April 2016. Source: U21 Premier League results
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Division 2

Table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or qualification
1 Derby County U21s (P) 22 13 3 6 44 26 +18 42 Promotion to 2016–17 U23 Premier League Division 1
2 Arsenal U21s (P) 22 12 4 6 40 25 +15 40 Qualification for Play-offs
3 Swansea City U21s 22 12 3 7 42 24 +18 39
4 Aston Villa U21s 22 11 6 5 28 27 +1 39
5 Blackburn Rovers U21s 22 10 4 8 29 33 −4 34
6 West Bromwich Albion U21s 22 8 9 5 24 20 +4 33 Qualification for 2016–17 U23 Premier League Division 2
7 West Ham United U21s 22 9 5 8 37 34 +3 32
8 Stoke City U21s 22 10 2 10 24 24 0 32
9 Fulham U21s 22 8 5 9 26 29 −3 29
10 Newcastle United U21s 22 4 6 12 30 48 −18 18
11 Brighton & Hove Albion U21s 22 2 8 12 17 36 −19 14
12 Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s 22 2 7 13 20 35 −15 13
Updated to match(es) played on 10 May 2016. Source: [4]
(P) Promoted

Results

Home \ Away ARS AST BLB B&HA DER FUL NEW STO SWA WBA WHU WOL
Arsenal U21s 1–2 3–2 4–1 3–2 1–0 3–1 0–1 0–0 1–2 5–0 1–1
Aston Villa U21s 1–0 2–2 2–1 2–1 1–0 0–0 0–0 2–1 0–1 3–2 1–0
Blackburn Rovers U21s 1–0 2–2 3–0 0–1 0–2 2–1 1–0 2–0 2–1 4–3 2–1
Brighton & Hove Albion U21s 1–2 1–1 0–1 0–4 3–3 1–1 1–0 0–1 0–0 1–2 0–0
Derby County U21s 1–2 0–1 3–0 2–2 3–0 6–4 3–1 2–1 2–0 1–1 1–0
Fulham U21s 0–3 2–2 3–0 1–0 0–1 0–2 1–1 1–0 1–1 1–3 0–3
Newcastle United U21s 1–2 2–0 1–1 1–4 1–3 0–3 1–2 1–1 0–0 1–4 2–1
Stoke City U21s 1–3 2–1 1–0 1–0 1–2 1–2 3–0 1–2 2–1 2–1 1–0
Swansea City U21s 3–1 5–0 5–0 4–0 2–1 3–0 5–3 2–0 1–2 0–1 3–2
West Bromwich Albion U21s 1–1 1–0 1–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–4 2–0 3–0 2–1 0–0
West Ham United U21s 1–1 1–2 1–1 2–0 3–2 0–2 2–2 1–0 1–2 2–1 4–0
Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s 2–3 2–3 2–3 0–0 1–2 0–3 3–1 0–3 1–1 0–0 1–1
Updated to match(es) played on 19 April 2016. Source: U21 Premier League results
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Play-offs
Semifinals Final
      
2 Arsenal U21s 2
5 Blackburn Rovers U21s 1
2 Arsenal U21s 3
4 Aston Villa U21s 1
3 Swansea City U21s 1
4 Aston Villa U21s 2

Semifinals

Swansea City U21s1–2Aston Villa U21s
  • Gorre 38'
Attendance: 988
Referee: Richard Hulme
Arsenal U21s2–1Blackburn Rovers U21s
Attendance: 1,106
Referee: Christopher O'Donnell

Final

Arsenal U21s3–1Aston Villa U21s
 Report
Attendance: 2,357
Referee: Carl Brook

League 2

U21 Professional Development League 2
Season2015–16
ChampionsHuddersfield Town U21s
Matches played313
(310 RS, 3 PO)
Goals scored957 (3.06 per match)
(949 RS, 8 PO)
Top goalscorerAlex Jakubiak Watford U21s (16 Goals)
Biggest home winBarnsley U21s 6–0 Nottingham Forest U21s
(14 December 2015)
Biggest away winWatford U21s 0–5 Crystal Palace U21s
(14 March 2016)
Highest scoringQueens Park Rangers U21s 5–5 Huddersfield Town U21s
(17 August 2015)
Longest winning run12 Matches Huddersfield Town U21s
Longest unbeaten run17 Matches Sheffield United U21s
Longest winless run12 Matches Watford U21s
Longest losing run6 Matches Bristol City U21s
Highest attendance4,018 Sheffield United U21s 1–2 Huddersfield Town U21s
(14 May 2016)

League 2, referred to as the U21 Professional Development League 2, is split into two regional divisions.

Teams will play each team in their own division twice, and each team in the other division once, for a total of 30 games for North division teams, and 29 games each for South division teams.

At the end of the season, the teams finishing in the top two positions of both divisions will meet in the knockout stage to determine the overall league champion.

21 Teams competed in the league this season, 2 more than last season. Swansea City U21s left the league after 3 seasons to join the Premier League 2 as a Category One Academy on July 10.[5] Meanwhile, Bolton Wanderers U21s joined the league after dropping their Academy to Category Two Status in June.[6] Hull City U21s, and Watford U21s joined the league after obtaining Category Two Academy status with Hull City joining in May[7], and on July 3 for Watford.[8] [7]

League stage

North Division table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Huddersfield Town U21s 30 20 5 5 62 33 +29 65 Qualification for Knock-out stage
2 Sheffield United U21s 30 17 6 7 43 24 +19 57
3 Hull City U21s 30 13 7 10 55 42 +13 46
4 Birmingham City U21s 30 11 6 13 43 39 +4 39
5 Nottingham Forest U21s 30 12 3 15 49 50 −1 39
6 Bolton Wanderers U21s 30 9 10 11 41 45 −4 37
7 Leeds United U21s 30 9 10 11 39 47 −8 37
8 Crewe Alexandra U21s 30 10 6 14 47 55 −8 36
9 Coventry City U21s 30 10 6 14 43 57 −14 36
10 Sheffield Wednesday U21s 30 8 8 14 28 42 −14 32
11 Barnsley U21s 30 9 4 17 41 55 −14 31
Updated to match(es) played on 25 April 2016. Source: [9]

South Division table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Charlton Athletic U21s 29 16 9 4 52 29 +23 57 Qualification for Knock-out stage
2 Millwall U21s 29 15 9 5 45 25 +20 54
3 Cardiff City U21s 29 16 5 8 50 30 +20 53
4 Colchester United U21s 29 16 3 10 45 38 +7 51
5 Crystal Palace U21s 29 11 7 11 55 51 +4 40
6 Queens Park Rangers U21s 29 9 8 12 55 64 −9 35
7 Ipswich Town U21s 29 9 6 14 35 45 −10 33
8 Brentford U21s 29 8 8 13 50 63 −13 32
9 Bristol City U21s 29 9 3 17 38 59 −21 30
10 Watford U21s 29 5 7 17 33 56 −23 22
Updated to match(es) played on 25 April 2016. Source: [9]

Results

Home \ Away BAR BIR BOL BRE BRI CAR CHA COL COV CRE CPA HUD HUL IPS LEE MIL NOT QPR SHE SHW WTF
Barnsley U21s 0–4 1–0 2–3 3–0 1–1 0–4 0–1 0–3 1–2 3–3 6–0 1–1 0–0 2–1
Birmingham City U21s 2–0 2–2 1–3 1–2 2–1 1–0 2–1 2–2 3–1 1–2 3–0 1–2 0–0 1–1 2–0
Bolton Wanderers U21s 2–0 1–1 2–1 2–1 1–1 2–2 0–1 0–0 1–2 2–0 2–1 1–0 0–1 3–2
Brentford U21s 4–2 1–3 2–1 3–2 1–2 1–2 3–3 2–2 1–1 2–2 0–3 0–0 2–3 4–3
Bristol City U21s 3–2 3–0 0–1 2–3 0–2 0–4 2–1 1–4 1–1 0–1 3–1 2–3 2–1 1–2 2–1
Cardiff City U21s 0–2 1–1 3–0 2–0 1–2 3–2 4–0 3–1 1–0 1–0 0–0 3–2 0–4 3–0 2–1
Charlton Athletic U21s 3–0 1–2 2–1 2–2 1–1 3–1 1–1 3–2 1–1 1–1 1–0 1–1 2–0 4–0 2–1
Colchester United U21s 4–1 2–1 1–0 3–1 2–0 0–2 2–1 3–0 2–3 1–0 1–0 1–2 2–0 2–5 0–0
Coventry City U21s 0–1 1–0 4–3 4–2 2–1 4–1 2–0 1–1 3–0 1–2 2–6 3–3 1–2 0–1 2–0
Crewe Alexandra U21s 4–2 4–1 1–1 3–1 0–3 2–0 2–3 0–3 2–1 3–1 0–2 1–1 3–0 5–3
Crystal Palace U21s 1–0 3–3 2–3 0–1 1–1 1–2 1–2 1–1 2–3 1–1 2–1 0–0 3–3 1–3 2–0 6–2
Huddersfield Town U21s 3–2 1–0 2–1 4–0 2–1 4–0 6–1 1–1 3–2 1–0 2–2 0–2 1–0 3–1
Hull City U21s 2–3 2–1 3–0 3–1 2–0 1–1 5–0 1–3 3–1 1–1 0–0 2–4 1–1 0–2
Ipswich Town U21s 2–1 1–3 6–1 0–5 2–2 0–3 3–0 4–2 0–1 1–2 0–2 1–1 1–0 1–0 0–2
Leeds United U21s 1–4 0–0 3–3 3–0 1–3 1–1 1–0 0–2 0–2 1–3 1–2 2–1 3–3 2–1 1–0
Millwall U21s 4–2 1–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 1–0 4–1 1–0 5–1 0–2 3–0 3–1 2–2 1–2 0–0
Nottingham Forest U21s 1–0 3–1 5–1 2–2 2–1 1–3 1–2 3–1 0–1 1–2 2–3 2–0 3–1 1–0 1–1 1–2
Queens Park Rangers U21s 1–4 0–3 4–5 1–0 0–1 0–1 3–1 5–2 5–5 2–6 1–1 0–4 3–1 3–2 2–1
Sheffield United U21s 1–0 2–0 2–0 0–3 0–2 3–0 2–0 2–0 3–1 2–1 1–1 2–0 3–0 1–1
Sheffield Wednesday U21s 1–0 0–2 0–2 2–2 1–1 1–1 2–1 1–2 1–0 1–2 0–2 0–0 2–0 2–0 0–0
Watford U21s 0–2 1–1 3–3 1–1 0–2 2–0 3–1 0–5 1–2 1–3 1–2 1–0 0–1 3–3 0–2
Updated to match(es) played on 29 April 2016. Source: U21 League 2 results
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Knock-out stage

Semifinals

Charlton Athletic U21s1–2 (a.e.t.)Sheffield United U21s
Huddersfield Town U21s2–0Millwall U21s
 Report
PPG Canalside, Huddersfield

Final

Sheffield United U21s1–2Huddersfield Town U21s
 Report
Attendance: 4,018

See also

References

  1. ^ "Fixtures Announced Champions Manchester United Play Leicester City | Barclays Under-21 Premier League". www.premierleague.com. Archived from the original on 2015-07-11.
  2. ^ "U21 PREMIER LEAGUE DIVISION 1". Premier League. Archived from the original on 19 August 2015. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  3. ^ "U21 PREMIER LEAGUE DIVISION 1". Soccerway. Retrieved 26 April 2016.
  4. ^ "U21 PREMIER LEAGUE DIVISION 2". Soccerway. Retrieved 19 April 2016.
  5. ^ "ALL ACADEMY AGE GROUPS TO PLAY CATEGORY ONE FIXTURES". Swansea City.
  6. ^ "UPDATED: Wanderers to save £1 million by downgrading youth academy". The Bolton News. 12 June 2015.
  7. ^ a b "Academy". Hull City A.F.C. Retrieved 13 August 2024.
  8. ^ "ACADEMY: Watford Awarded EPPP Category Two Status". Watford FC.
  9. ^ a b "U21 Professional Development League 2". Soccerway. Retrieved 29 April 2016.