Two promising performances against West Bromwich Albion and Manchester City wielded just one point for the youngsters, so the Blackburn win was a welcome relief.
Now Sunderland pose the next challenge for Ryan’s men, who will hope to continue their upward spiral with another three point haul.
“The Blackburn win has given the lads a boost,” he explained. “You can see the confidence in training after getting the first win under their belts.
“I was really pleased for the players because we deserved to beat West Brom but conceded in injury time and then caused Man City problems without reward.
“The lads have trained really well this week and it’s about looking forward and maintaining the standards they’ve set themselves in the first three games.”
Like the First Team, the Wolves youngsters enjoyed a weekend without a game due to the international break last time out, which gave Ryan time to put the work in on the training pitch.
After a high turnover in personnel during the summer, the under 18s have settled quickly under Ryan’s watch, and the coach is pleased with the progress a month into the new season.
“The attitude and application in training and games has been brilliant. The lads have showed a willingness to work hard and it’s about fixing the layers on week by week.
“The pleasing thing as staff is we’re seeing what we put in during training coming out in games and we need to keep that going throughout the season.”
Under 23s coach, Scott Sellers will be in attendance for the Sunderland match once again and Ryan insists it’s up to his players to catch the eye.
“Scott has a big squad but obviously a lot of them have gone out on loan now and that will have a knock-on effect so there’s an opportunity.
“There’s a pathway at this football club where players will get challenged and now it’s an opportunity for my lads to really stake a claim for being in the 23s,” he added.
