http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/blog/2008/oct/21/walesfootballteam-championshipScouting Report: Simon Church, ReadingThree goals for Wales Under-21s against England suggests Simon Church has a bright future ahead of himI went to Villa Park to watch England against Wales Under-21s with an open mind to see how good Wales were, considering they had finished above France in their European Championship qualifying group. One player who caught my eye was Simon Church. I had heard very little about him but was impressed by his return of three goals in Wales's two-legged play-off against an England side who had conceded only one goal in the whole of their campaign.
He is a very good finisher, an ability encapsulated by Wales's second goal when what might have appeared to the layman as a simple finish was in fact a well timed run and execution that had to be dug out very quickly after Church realised that the goalkeeper had closed him down. Being able to adapt in so little time is the sign of a natural goalscorer.
That was far from the only strength to his game as he showed a willingness to work in defence. When Aaron Ramsey released himself from his advanced central-midfield role to close down one of the centre-halves on the ball, Church moved to look after the left-back nice and early so that he was not required to chase out of position.
He always tried to read the opposition defence when they were in possession, looking to exploit potential mistakes. Indeed he almost succeeded on two occasions, coming within a whisker of getting on the end of two short back-passes. He surprised the two centre-halves with a decent leap, showing he can more than hold his own in that department, and for someone whom you would not class as a target man his first touch and hold-up play were not bad.
He worked well off his partner on the night, Sam Vokes, going directly in behind the flick-ons but making angles when Vokes had time to pick him out. He was a willing option for his winger when his team-mate was faced up by two opponents and he was quick to get in the box when he was one-on-one. His positioning and judgment of a cross coming in was good, borne out twice in a melee of players when he popped up with two headers at goal.
However, for all his good play around the pitch it is the box where he comes alive and feels most comfortable. This was best summed up when he received a ball surrounded by three English players: in a tight area he controlled, turned, jinked again when he couldn't get his shot off, cut between two defenders and shot just wide. He did, however, get a dressing down from his manager, Brian Flynn, when the best cross of the night skidded across goal but he was nowhere to be seen, having switched off after the build-up.
This is a player who has yet to make a first-team appearance for his parent club, Reading, but has been loaned out to Crewe, Yeovil and Wycombe where he has managed one goal in 22 appearances. For Wales he has seven goals in 10, which makes me wonder why he has not made more of an impression at club level. This is a mystery to me - his is surely a career waiting to happen.
How he rates
Age 19
Born High Wycombe
Position Striker
Height 6ft
Weight 13st 4lb
From Youth team
Pace 8/10
Heading 8/10
Shooting 9/10
Team responsibility 8/10
Valuation £300,000
