Hull City Academy are delighted to announce that Alex Ackerley has joined the club as Head of Academy Coaching.
The 32-year-old takes over from Matt Hare, who worked at the club for 17 years.
A former Youth Development Phase Coach at Burton Albion, Ackerley held different positions at Loughborough University over a combined eight-year period. This included being the Head Coach for the Loughborough University men’s football programme from October 2017 to June 2021.
Three months after departing Loughborough University, he became a Youth Development Phase Coach at Sunderland, starting the development of academy players across the Under-15 and Under-16 age groups.
Promoted with the Black Cats to be an Individual Development Coach for the Under-13s across to Under-21s in January 2022, Ackerley stayed in the position until August 2023 when he joined FIFA as a Talent Coach, working primarily with various age groups in the Lithuanian Football Federation.
“I am very happy to be here. There’s a lot of good stuff going on already at the club, so it is a great opportunity for me,” said Ackerley.
“It’s clear Richard Naylor has a strong handle on the direction of the academy, and the staff here are all pulling in the same direction. That makes it a lot easier to come in and hopefully make a positive impact.
“You can watch the age groups all the way through, and there are good players in every age group, which again is testament to the work that has already gone on. Whether that is through recruitment, coaching, or support staff, there are good players at the football club.
“The first challenge for me is to encourage that there is a coherent and consistent pathway for the players. We want all players from Under-9s all the way to Under-21s to know that there is a pathway, and having spoken to the coaching staff already, there are lots of good pieces in place to do that. It is about building on that real clarity on what we do, how we do it, and why we do it.”
