Richard Walker has praised his under-18s following a 5-2 victory over Blackburn Rovers in Saturday’s U18 Premier League opener.
Head coach Walker was particularly impressed with his attacking trio, who scored three of the five goals between them, and has highlighted their defending from the front as key to the team success. However, despite the positive result, Walker also wants to see improvements in other areas of the performance to ensure that the players continue to develop in the right way.
On getting off to a winning start
“I’m pleased for the boys. They've worked really hard in pre-season and been pushed to the limits, so it was nice for the lads to get rewarded with three points today.
“Large aspects of the game were really positive and there were lots of pleasing aspects.
“I thought the front three of (Mateus) Mane, Conor (McLeod) and Emi (Ballard-Matthews) had too much for them, and I thought they were a real threat.
“They've got ability, so you always fancy them to crop up and produce at this level, and all three of them did time and time again, whether it be the goals or producing other moments.
“Likewise, they also give us such a defensive starting point in the way that they press, so we're blessed that we've got three superbly talented players at the top end of the pitch who can score a goal from nothing, but are also totally about the team.
“If you want to succeed in modern day football, you've got to be a team player so that was especially pleasing from today's game.”
On what improvements he wants to see
“For us, it was just taking care of the ball. I thought we turned over the ball at times unnecessarily.
“We've got to look after the ball better than we did at times when we weren't under significant pressure.
“We've turned it over unnecessarily, and that isn't what we're about, so the concentration levels there have to be better.
“I thought we were better than Blackburn with the greatest respect, but we can't give teams a lifeline.
“Overall, we just want the players to keep improving and keep developing. There have been signs of progress from the start of pre-season which is pleasing and I'm sure there'll be plenty more progress to come.”
