Wolves 1 (Harper 47) Chelsea 3 (Ngumoha 44, Runham 52, 87)
Molineux played host to the U17 Premier League Cup final on Thursday night, and despite a valiant effort on home turf, Richard Walker’s young Wolves side were defeated 3-1 by Chelsea.
Fraser Harper equalised for the Old Gold early in the second half after Rio Ngumoha’s opener just before half-time, before a Frankie Runham double saw the West London outfit secure the trophy.
Despite a cagey opening, the first chance came four minutes in for Chelsea, as a Landon Emenalo free-kick was headed over by Genesis Antwi, before Runham saw an effort from the edge of the box well blocked by Makenzie Bradbury.
Wolves’ first half-chance came through some neat link-up play between Lennon Patterson and Conor McLeod. However, the latter’s low cross was gathered by Kai Crampton before Dani Angel could pounce.
Walking out into the Molineux 🏟 pic.twitter.com/byYjcL1gkE
— Wolves Academy (@WolvesAcademy) April 11, 2024
Angel then saw another opening come his way. However, his header from Bradbury’s fizzed in free-kick was wide of the mark on 14 minutes.
The striker would continue to be at the forefront of the early action, as once again Patterson and McLeod carved the Chelsea defence open on the left, creating ample space for Angel who fired over from the edge of the box.
In an end-to-end encounter, the Blues were next to force an opening as Antwi’s long-distance run saw him eventually play Runham through, but Lewys Benjamin was on hand to tip his dinked effort behind.
Antwi once again caused the Old Gold midfield issues with another dancing run through the centre of the park, but the defender was unable to get his strike on target after finding himself on the edge of the box.
Wolves’ next opportunity came as Crampton’s attempt to play out from the back saw McLeod presented with a golden opportunity, before his left-footed drive was swiftly blocked by Tayo Subuloye in the Blues’ back-line.
The first goal of the night came just a minute before the interval. Ngumoha created the space for himself to fire a low drive past Benjamin’s right side from 20 yards out, giving Chelsea a key advantage heading into half-time.
Half-time | Wolves 0-1 Chelsea
Walker’s men responded straight away after the break, and just a couple of minutes into the second half, Wes Okoduwa won the ball back high and played in Harper, before the midfielder’s curling effort took a wicked deflection into the right-hand corner of the net, leaving Crampton completely wrong-footed.
All square in the #U17PLCup final 🤝 pic.twitter.com/8FODeJkqDS
— Wolves Academy (@WolvesAcademy) April 11, 2024
Just moments later, Harper came close to a second after Patterson’s neat ball in found the number ten, but the Chelsea keeper was alert as any touch seemed goalbound.
However, Wolves were ultimately punished for a defensive error, as the ball found its way to Runham, who needed no hesitation to shoot across Benjamin to restore the lead after 52 minutes.
The Old Gold looked to restore parity within minutes, as McLeod’s searching cross evaded Angel, before Fabian Reynolds was able to recycle the attack, and although he found McLeod, the winger couldn’t generate the power required from his header to equalise.
Benjamin was then on hand to deny Antwi, as he eased past Okoduwa before the Welshman stood firm against his effort from the narrowest of angles on the left flank.
Angel saw another effort rise high of the crossbar, before Reynolds hit a curler that was deflected behind just seconds later.
Substitute Shumaira Mheuka forced Benjamin into a fine save with 15 minutes remaining, as he searched for the top-right corner, but the Wolves keeper kept his side firmly in the contest heading into the dying embers of the encounter.
Walker’s men continued to push for an equaliser, and after breaking from a Chelsea corner, McLeod took aim after cutting in from the left, but he saw his fierce strike well saved.
Hayden Carson denied a breakaway before playing Minkyu Ji through, but the substitute was the next to be denied, seeing his effort pushed around the post.
Mheuka had the chance to seal the victory for the West Londoners, but after initially rounding the Wolves keeper, he was forced to settle for a corner.
Ultimately, Chelsea would leave Wolves with a mountain to climb from the resulting set-play, as the ball was cleared only as far as Runham, who netted for the second time as his volley took a slight deflection on route to the bottom corner.
Despite having it all to do, Wolves continued to battle away, with another substitute – Emilio Ballard-Matthews – going close as the game entered four minutes of added time.
Chelsea had one last chance to score a fourth, but Shaun Wade was unable to find the target after being sent clear on goal in the final minute, before his side collected the U17 Premier League Cup in a post-match ceremony.
Full-time | Wolves 1-3 Chelsea
Hold your heads high, lads 💛 pic.twitter.com/qzqVYL2Moc
— Wolves Academy (@WolvesAcademy) April 11, 2024
LINE UPS
Wolves | Benjamin, Okoduwa, Carson, Rawlings (Ayman 56), Voice, Patterson, Reynolds (Ballard-Matthews 81), Bradbury, Angel, Harper (Ji 70), C. McLeod.
Subs not used | Hardy, Gidaree.
Chelsea | Crampton, Wheeler, Subuloye (Washington 58), Olagunju, Antwi, Emenalo, Runham, Harrison, McAidoo (Barbour 68), Cardosa (Mheuka 58) Ngumoha (Wade 68).
Sub not used | Austin.
Attendance | 1,188
NEXT FIVE
Manchester United (H) – 16/04
Newcastle United (H) – 20/04
Liverpool (A) – 27/04
Leeds United (A) – 01/05
Derby County (H) – 04/05
Report by Benedict Ferraby
