Entertaining fare from our U21 on a sunny Bank Holiday Monday.
Wigan played their part and there was a period in the 2nd half where they created plenty of chances of their own. The penalty save at 2-0 was crucial.
Although he isn’t a big player, visiting centre forward Stones had given the Swans central defenders a rough physical ride throughout the game and, a minute after he’d been booked for flying into Filip Lissah, he tempted Lissah into a rash challenge in the area to give Wigan a penalty. He stepped up to take it, hit it hard and high and Matthews made a great one-handed save. If that had gone in, I expect the visitors may well have gone onto equalise.
Our formation was fluid – I’d describe it as 3-4-2-1: Matthews; Ludvigsen, Lissah, Blythe; Wilson, Cotterill, Leverett, Ogbeta; Tarrelle Whittaker, Lloyd; Josh Thomas.
No Azeem Abdulai or Dan Williams, no Wasiri Williams.
3 cracking goals.
Ben Lloyd created the first, with an assist from Ogbeta. Whittaker got the 2nd with a low left foot drive from outside the box. Lloyd finished things off in injury time after good work by subs Joe Thomas and Corey Hurford opened up the visitors’ defence.
Josh Thomas didn’t get much change from his markers, but still had a couple of chances and came off on 76 minutes with a goal disallowed for a pull. His replacement Ruben Davies got quickly involved and he too had a goal disallowed for a borderline offside decision.
Good to see a couple of last season’s U18 getting chances at this level, they’ll only benefit. Kyrell Wilson has pace to burn and showed a lot of aggression as well. Very well taken goal today and with his left foot. Could do with some throw-in coaching, though.
Our players seem to flourish on this pitch.
The entire team did well, even if we went through a bit of a lull in the middle of the 2nd half. Ben Lloyd was the pick for me, very attacking approach play. Ogbeta started tentatively, got better with more service and space, and had a stinging shot tipped over in added time by the Wigan keeper.
Difficult to tell for sure from where I was sitting, perhaps 400+ there today.