FeatureAcademy column: Special tributes to Stephen Packer and Ian Frodsham

John Thompson

The football never stops at the Academy and we staged our very own Euros during the past month with a series of tournaments over successive weekends in June.

It was absolutely fantastic to see so many families with us to support the boys.

Stephen Packer and Ian Frodsham were two very special boys who were sadly taken too early, but their legacy will never be forgotten at the Academy.

Stephen touched the hearts of everybody he met during his sadly-too-short time at the Academy.

Unfortunately, I didn't have the pleasure of meeting Stephen, but my dad – who was a scout at the Academy – knew him and his family really well.

Stephen was popular with players and coaches alike for his enthusiasm, sense of humour, his humility and, above all, his ability to play the game so well. He was a very talented forward who was exceptionally quick – with and without the ball.

He was a huge LFC fan and his favourite player was Luis Suarez, who he would watch while attending games at Anfield.

Sadly, Stephen fell ill shortly before the 2012-13 season and sadly passed away on November 25, 2012.

Stephen's legacy at our club may be different to the legends who had the chance to fulfil their potential, but his influence is no less significant due to the courage and strength he displayed in the face of his illness.

It was an honour for us, as always, to welcome Stephen's mum and dad and the family. They are always so welcome with us and it's always brilliant to see them.

Phil Charnock

Ian Frodsham, like Stephen, touched the hearts of everybody he met here at the football club.

Ian was a very, very special footballer and person and anybody that came into contact with him will never forget him. We will never forget him at the Academy and his memory will always live on.

When you walk through the doors at the Academy, you will always see the Ian Frodsham indoor arena. There is a mural as you walk through the doors, which Steve Heighway penned the words for. Steve, along with Hughie McAuley, Dave Shannon and Frank Skelly, all loved Ian and they played a big part in his footballing journey until it was taken away far too soon.

Ian would excel in all of the areas of the club's ambition: unity, dignity and commitment. That was Ian. He was passionate, committed, he had character and as a player he would run all day and wouldn't be scared of putting a foot in against anybody.

He is still close to a lot of people's hearts who are still at the club, like myself, Mike Yates, Ian Dunbavin, Jon Newby and Dave Shannon.

Ian had pretty much everything as a player, I thought, and I had the joy of playing with him. I know this is easy to say in hindsight, but I think he would have made it at Liverpool.

If I look back at the attributes he had, Ian could go past players, he could score goals, he was reasonably quick, a box-to-box player, he was competitive and he could defend. Having spoken to a few of the coaches – and in my own eyes as well – there's no doubt in most people's minds that he would have played for our senior team given that chance.

It was fantastic to have Ian's mother Lynn and family with us, and they are always in our hearts.

On successive weekends we had tournaments for the U9s, U10s, U11s and U13s and they were fantastic occasions.

We had teams from all over the country and Ireland and as far afield as Norway, Bulgaria and the USA.

There were Istanbul-style comebacks, as well as penalty-shootout drama, last-gasp winners, fantastic goals and memorable saves.

We would also like to thank our friends over at Orange Veins for their support in helping us stage these tournaments and look forward to our continued relationship with them.

Everyone was a winner and that was the key message from the tournaments. I think it's a testament to what Stephen and Ian were all about that we are still thinking about them and will continue to do so.

John Thompson and Phil Charnock were speaking to Liverpoolfc.com's Steve Hunter