Bates - Boro is best

Graeme Bailey caught up with Middlesbrough's Matthew Bates to discuss the club's acclaimed academy.

Matthew Bates is understandably a huge fan of the club's current mantra of 'Boro is best' and as part of skysports.com's Look to the Future series, he tells Graeme Bailey why that is.

Middlesbrough are currently battling for their Championship lives, and their current situation has seen young players from the youth set-up drafted into a relegation battle. Things could not have been more different for Teessider Matthew Bates, who broke through the club's highly acclaimed academy nearly a decade ago when Boro were going through the greatest period in their history having won the Carling Cup, whilst also embarking on their European adventure which saw them reach the Uefa Cup final. Bates also won the FA Youth Cup with Boro and is a true believer in youth and all the benefits that come with promoting from within. "This club has been based on youth for almost the last decade, we have brought a lot of players through and has been a good money earner for the club," said Bates, who is also now Middlesbrough skipper. "Dave Parnaby and Mark Proctor have got a lot of praise from that and rightly so, they bring the lads up correctly and the right way. "I think that Dave has a lot of work on his shoulders, the club has almost come full circle from when I came through when there was a lot of money and world-class players. "I think it was harder for us to get our opportunities, but I don't think that is to say players coming through now can't be as successful. They will be looking at the situation and smiling because there isn't a lot of money for transfers and not as many players coming in as in the past and they will be chomping at the bit to get their chance now. "In the past, we had a big bunch where we had me, David Wheater, Tony McMahon, Andrew Davies, who is back now, and we won the Youth Cup. It was a good period for the club and that has continued. "We have now got Joe Bennett who has come through this season and Cameron Park, who has just made his debut."

Bates himself began life at Manchester United's academy in Birtley, but that was forced to shut and Boro snapped him up. He now thinks Middlesbrough can compete to attract any players because of the chances the club regularly give to young starlets. "I think it does help attract the players," he continued. "When I first came here, I was 12, 13 after Manchester United's academy closed down, and this was close to me and they showed interest. "I think now, with the young kids who look, they will see the players coming through the academy and think that is what I want to do. I think that could give us an advantage but I think if a young kid is asked about playing for a Premier League or Championship club they will always say Premier League, so our job is to get back up to that level to make things easier for the academy. "A lot of the bigger clubs try to bring players from abroad, they have the ability to spread their net further. As a team and a business you need to look for best in the world and that is what they do, but that is what also makes this the best league in the world." Bates thinks the home-grown rules being introduced are positive: "There are arguments for both. I would like to see a cap on it, they brought the home-grown rules out and I suspect that may increase and I think it will be good for local fans." Bates was forced to leave Manchester United as youngster as the FA Charter meant clubs could not sign players more than 30 minutes away, and he thinks that was to the benefit of Boro and other clubs. "That was a good rule. I think there are still loopholes and teams still do it, even from abroad and they get moved over - that comes with money and the bigger clubs. "I think that has helped us in that we have brought in local lads and the fans can bond with them as they are local and they can see how much it means for them and we certainly have that at Middlesbrough. I think that will continue to be Boro's philosophy to do that, obviously there will be the odd one from abroad but they will have to be an exceptional talent." Bates has progressed to be captain of his home-town club and he admits he takes the responsibility seriously. "I have got to prioritise things myself, if any of the lads come to me then they know where I am. "Ben Gibson [England youth international and nephew of chairman Steve] is coming through now and I speak to him quite a lot. He asks me for advice and I give it to him - that is not just being a captain, that is part and parcel of being a senior player. "They know I am always there, Dave Parnaby knows that too - if he wants me to have a word he will tell me." The closeness Bates and his colleagues have with youth supremo Parnaby epitomises the spirit at Boro. "If you look at the staff here, they are all local and that helps create the atmosphere and that creates a bridge from players, to staff to fans. Things haven't gone our way but everyone can then see things are looking up." Boro are providing a host of players for the England youth team, Bates himself being a former Under 21 ace, and he admits it is difficult to decide between club and country. "If you asked the chairman, chief exec or manager and players coming through is about money, but if you ask an English fan, etc it is different. The year we got to the Uefa Cup final, we had a Premier League game [at Fulham] where 10 of the 11 lads were born with 30-minutes of the stadium, that is unique, I don't think anyone can say that about another club." Bates himself has battled through huge adversity, and is probably the only professional ever to come through four cruciate knee ligament injuries and still be playing. Albeit currently sidelined with a hamstring problem, Bates has emerged as one of the key players under Tony Mowbray's new regime and he is back playing in central defence after a run in midfield. "I had a run at centre-half in my first season, in the Uefa Cup year, I played a few times but with injuries I haven't had a run. There has been a lot of centre-halves, but I knew that was my position. "That is where I see the rest of my career. I am not comfortable at right-back, left back. I can play midfield but it is centre-back where I want to be." He has even been linked with a move to the Premier League and he admits that there is nothing wrong with that as it proves he is progressing. "I would love to get linked to the Premier League, because that means you are doing well and that is just part of football. The gaffer has made me captain and I am not going to knock on his door and ask him to leave. "I have got 18-months left on my contract who knows what is going to happen? I have never hidden away from the fact I would love to play in the Premier League again and I would love for that to be with Middlesbrough. "But I am now just putting those injuries behind me. I am just enjoying my football and taking it in my stride."