Army XI 4-3 Rovers
Tuesday 11th NovemberOur U-18 side played an Army XI at Aldershot on Remembrance Day and were beaten by the odd goal in seven after their hosts scored a last minute goal.
In an excellent performance, Ryan Broom, Tom Fry and Blake Davies were on target for Rovers.
“In all honesty”, said Youth Team manager Alan Walsh, “we didn’t deserve to lose what was a very competitive game.
“Most of the Army side were in their twenties so the game provided a tough, physical, test for us. The game was played at the Army Stadium, on a very good surface, though we started slowly and gave away a sloppy goal after only five minutes.
“It took us a while to settle but, when we did, we began to play some decent football and although we got ourselves into some good positions we simply weren’t clinical enough in front of goal.
“We conceded a second goal after giving away possession too cheaply, but Ryan Broom pulled a goal back for us on the stroke of half time.
“During the break I praised the boys for the way they had played, but asked them to be better when in possession and said that we needed to convert any chances we created.
“Unfortunately we conceded a third goal ten minutes into the second half when our marking was poor as a free kick was played into the area.
After that third goal, though, we started to play some very good football, winning possession and breaking forward. As a result we pulled a goal back through Tom Fry, and equalised with a goal from Blake Davies.
“At that point we were the team in the ascendancy and had we been a little bit more composed in front of goal we might well have scored more.
“However in the last minute of the game we tried to switch play from one flank to another and gave away possession quite cheaply, which allowed the Army to break, and conceded a fourth goal.
“While I was pleased with our overall performance against a men’s side, it was disappointing to lose, especially in the final minute of the game.”
Team: Cameron Clarke, Tyler Lyttle, Bradley Confrey, Alfie Kilgour, Harrison Trueman, Ryan Broom (Elliott Green, 60), Connor Jones, George Corp, Tom Fry, Mitch Palmer Blake Davies.