Chesterfield Academy

Chesterfield Academy runs a category 3 academy based in the Derbyshire. They focus on elite youth development to nurture young talent.

Some of Chesterfield’s Under-21 home matches take place at Alfreton FC’s grounds, Impact Arena Stadium.

The Academy’s official X (formerly Twitter) account is @ChesterfieldYth.

Academy Competitions

Each season, the Academy competes across the standard slate of competitions for Category Three clubs:

• U18 Youth Alliance Cup – an EFL-organised youth tournament for Under-18 teams from League One and League Two clubs competing in the EFL Youth Alliance. It follows a format similar to the EFL Trophy, beginning with a regional group stage before progressing to a national knockout phase.
• FA Youth Cup – the traditional nationwide knockout competition open to academy sides across English football.
• Central League Cup – a reserve-team competition in which entrants are divided into groups, with the top two teams in each group advancing to the quarter-finals.

2025/26 Season

Full details of players retained, released, or returned from loan following the 2024/25 season can be found on the club’s official retained list.

Academy Players on Loan 2025/26

• James Sissons (Goalkeeper) – Alfreton Town
• Bailey Hobson (Midfielder) – Brackley Town
• Liam Jessop (Forward) – Lincoln Red Imps
• Jon Hague (Midfielder) – Doncaster City
• Gunner Elliott (Forward) – Matlock

Academy Players in the First Team 2025/26

Alex Whitney (Defender, #42).

International Players 2025/26

• James Sissons (Goalkeeper) – Malta First Team
• Jahiem Thompson (Midfielder) – Anguilla First Team
• Gunner Elliott (Forward) – Malta U21
• Mohssen Mohamed (Forward) – Yemen U23
• Hisham Awadh (Defender) – Yemen U23

2025/26 Tournament Groupings

In the U18 Youth Alliance Cup, Chesterfield’s Under-18s were drawn at home against Preston North End. In the FA Youth Cup first round proper, the Under-18s were drawn at home against Aylestone.

In the Central League Cup, Chesterfield’s Reserves were drawn in Group B against Reserve sides from Derby County, Grimsby Town and Mansfield Town.

Season Timeline

August 2025

• 18-year-old Maltese goalkeeper James Sissons joined Chesterfield’s academy from FC Melita.

May 2026

• Alex Whitney was offered a professional contract.

2024/25 Season

Based in Derbyshire, Chesterfield Academy ran a Category Three academy.

Scholars 2024/25

Alex Witney (Defender), Ethan Hardy (Defender), Marcus McKernan (Midfielder), Josh Hague (Midfielder) and Bailey Wright (Forward).

Academy Players on Loan 2024/25

• Liam Jessop (Forward) – Worksop Town
• Bailey Hobson (Midfielder) – Barnet
• Christovie Kondolo (Midfielder) – Farsley Celtic

Academy Graduates in the First Team 2024/25

Liam Jessop (Forward, #38), Ali Mohiuddin (Midfielder, #39), Gunner Elliott (Forward, #41).

International Players 2024/25

• Liam Jessop (Forward) – Gibraltar U21
• Gunner Elliott (Forward) – Malta U17; U21

2024/25 Tournament Groupings

In the U18 Youth Alliance Cup, Chesterfield’s Under-18s were drawn in Group D against Under-18 sides from Burton Albion, Lincoln City, Mansfield Town, Notts County and Rotherham.

In the Central League Cup, Chesterfield’s Reserves were drawn in Group D against Reserve sides from Notts County, Mansfield Town and Grimsby Town.

For the FA Youth Cup, the Under-18s were drawn at home against Walsall in the first round, at home against Shrewsbury Town in the second round, and away against Cardiff City in the third round.

Season Timeline

October 2024

• Chesterfield secured a place in the second round of the FA Youth Cup, following their tie against Walsall at home.

November 2024

• The young Spireites were drawn at home to Shrewsbury Town in the second round of the FA Youth Cup.
• In the third round of the FA Youth Cup, Chesterfield were drawn away to Cardiff City, contingent on their result against Shrewsbury Town.
• Chesterfield progressed to the third round of the FA Youth Cup, following their tie against Shrewsbury Town.

December 2024

• Chesterfield were set to play away at Cardiff City in the FA Youth Cup on Tuesday 10 December at the Cardiff International Sports Campus.
• The FA Youth Cup journey came to an end for Chesterfield’s Under-18s, following their tie away at Cardiff City.

March 2025

• As part of EFL Youth Development Week, celebrated across all 72 League clubs, Chesterfield highlighted its strong track record of developing academy players.
• The club’s strong scouting network was evident in the recruitment of Ali Mohiuddin from a tournament at St George’s Park, Liam Jessop from a tournament in Gibraltar, and Gunner Elliott through a Derbyshire Schoolboy game.
• At just 16, Elliott became the first academy player in six years to feature for the first team.

May 2025

Chesterfield’s youth team was set to travel to Scotland from 21 to 25 July, where they would be based at the University of Stirling, competing in several matches against high-level opposition during their stay.