Goalkeeper on his drive to always improve
- Jacob Chapman discusses his development
- Young Terrier enjoying training with the First Team
- Follow Academy Twitter; @htafcacademy
Huddersfield Town goalkeeper Jacob Chapman is determined to keep improving his game and making the most of the opportunities that come his way.
This campaign has been different for the Young Terrier for a number of reasons, including an unfortunate string of injuries.
He spoke to htafc.com about how he was still able to grow as a ‘keeper despite being forced away from the net.
“It’s been different for me. I’ve been injured three times and I’ve kind of never had injuries before.
“It’s been a season where I’ve had to show resilience and come back from those injuries.
“I was lucky enough to play for the First Team in preseason, I had two appearances there.
“So, while it’s been a little bit frustrating at times with the injuries, I’ve still taken quite a lot from the season so far.
“I’m always learning whether that’s from training with the First Team a lot or now that I’m getting back into playing.
“Playing games is so important, so it’s been good to be out there, and I’ve got my fingers crossed that I don’t get injured again and I can finish the season strong.”
The 20-year-old was quick to comment on how being able to train with the First Team has helped benefit his development.
“With the quality of the First Team – both the coaches and the players – it’s helped me a lot.
“You’re playing with players that have played at the top level, have played in the Premier League and played hundreds of games - being able to train with players like that and with really experienced goalkeepers has helped me develop a lot and get better at a lot of things within my goalkeeping.
“Paul Clements and Neil Bennett have really helped me.
“Carlos wants you to be really good at playing out from the back and using passes that I wasn’t really used to at first, so I’ve been focusing a lot on that.
“I’m also not the tallest goalkeeper, so I need to be really quick and explosive.
“There’ll always be lots of little things that I’m working on in training and trying to improve, because there’s always room to be better.
“I make sure to keep focusing on the things I think I’m good at as well.”
When it comes to matches Chapman is always one of the loudest on the pitch, something he admits comes naturally.
“My dad is massive on me being a leader and has been ever since I turned into a goalkeeper when I was 10.
“Sometimes I might be having a quiet game, but I need to communicate with my players and so I still do a lot of work in that sense.
“Obviously I can see the whole game from my position, so I need to make sure I’m always telling my players what to do and where to be, so I think it’s very important that I’m the loudest, if not one of the loudest, on the pitch.
“Despite it coming naturally to me, I have been working on little things like not saying too much and being clearer with what I’m saying.”
The keeper also took the time to reflect on how far he’s come in the last year.
“I feel I’ve improved a lot.
“I think training with the First Team alone, getting to train with some great goalkeepers and some great coaches has benefited me a lot.
“I’m a lot better at being fast and being explosive and I’m showing that in my games now.
“I made a save recently against Salford, which was a good example of moving my feet, but as much as I feel like I have improved, there’s still a lot to improve on.
“I feel like I’m headed in the right direction now, I just need to keep my head down, keep going and opportunities will come.”
You can keep up-to-date with the progress of Jacob and his teammates by following Town’s official Academy Twitter; @htafcacademy.
