Everton's first team trained with academy players Wednesday

Stars such as Dominic Calvert-Lewin, Jordan Pickford and Conor Coady were all present as the Toffees welcomed age groups from U7 to U11 at Finch Farm.

The event had previously been a tradition at Everton, but was put on hold as a result of the Covid pandemic, with Wednesday being the first time the youngsters have been involved with the first team since 2019.

The event is branded 'Academy Day' by the club.

Several pictures were shared of the young and senior players enjoying themselves as they took part in the fun on Merseyside.







Everton face Fulham in the Premier League on Saturday as they continue their fight against relegation.

They are currently 17th in the league table, level on points with Nottingham Forest in 18th, though Sean Dyche's side have a better goal difference.
They are also two points ahead of Leicester in 19th, but only four points off Wolves in 13th.

But they took time out of their schedule to spend what Everton's Twitter account described as 'a priceless day with the next generation'.

'We're at Finch with the kids for Academy Day to have a little kick about with the next generation,' winger Demarai Gray told the club Twitter.

'They're full of beans but it's nice for the kids to be around us and the managerial staff as well. It's a good day.'




Clips showed manager Dyche watching on as the academy players teamed with senior pros, and one video sees midfielder Tom Davies pick up one youngster in celebration after he had scored.

'It's a terrific occasion,' said Gareth Prosser, Everton's academy director. 'I think it's four years since we last did the Academy Day here, and it's a brilliant opportunity and brilliant experience for these kids.

'We want to create experiences for them and memories, and this is just part of it. We hope this is the first of many great experiences and memories they're going to have being involved with Everton Football Club.

'Pathway is massive across any club from any academy, so to have the first team men, the first team women and the academy on the same sight makes a huge difference. The interaction on a daily basis with players moving up and down and secondly to promote and have opportunities like this.'
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