United youngsters go down 3-0 to Bristol Rovers
Oxford United 0 Bristol Rovers 3Merit Youth League 2
Saturday 18th April
United’s under-18s concluded their season with a Merit Youth League 2 defeat at the hands of Bristol Rovers at the Rover Sports Ground last Saturday.
Fielding a very young side, United were undone in the second half by a penalty and eventually well beaten by a Rovers side who were on a 19-game unbeaten run.
Coach Chris Allen told us:
“It’s like repeat, repeat repeat. It’s been Groundhog Day for the last few games of the season! We have played OK, we have had plenty of the ball, got into the final third, and then chances have gone begging. George Jeacock put some great balls in and worked really hard but had a great chance that he would like to have done better with.
“Then Canice Carroll, who is really good on the ball usually, turns and plays a ball inside that their lad is on to, he goes round Jack Stevens who brings him down and we are a goal down from a penalty. Jack stayed on and then he saved a second penalty but then they scored again from the edge of the six-yard box. We have to do better defensively but at the same time we are learning all the time, looking to play it out from the back and in a young side you are going to get the odd mistake. It’s how quickly we learn from them that matters.
“We had a lot of under-16s involved in this game and have given them chances towards the end of the season, so that will help next year. In this game we just needed to be a bit more aggressive, a bit more clinical in front of goal, and keep learning.”
United: Stevens, Diaz-Benitez , McCormack, Carrol, Tuttle, Dennis (Heap), George, Jeacock, Graham, Malachi, Hartley (C Hawtin),