U18 Report: Saints 2-5 Spurs

A second-half surge from the visitors saw a heavy loss inflicted on the hosts, although there had been little between the sides up to that point in what was an exciting opening 45 minutes.

Saints started brightly and went close to taking the lead after just three minutes, as Will Ferry fed James Morris down the left, with his low cross working its way to Christian Norton in the area, only for his low shot to be well saved by Spurs keeper Jonathan De Bie.

It proved a particularly crucial stop as, seconds later, the visitors went down the other end and scored.

A through ball from deep picked out the run of Jeremie Mukendi, and he finished coolly with a low shot into the far corner.

Saints came close to levelling in the seventh minute, as the lively Enzo Robise sent in a low cross from the right that flashed all the way to the back post, where Ferry came flying in at close range, but his effort was blocked superbly by Max Tainio.

It was a back-and-forth game, but Saints fell further behind when, in the 19th minute, a long ball out of defence picked out Mukendi over the top, and he once again finished into the same bottom corner.

The hosts responded excellently to the setback, though, and halved the deficit in the 29th minute.

Robise was upended in the area by De Bie, and the Saints winger then stepped up to stroke home the spot kick.

The game was nearly level moments later, as captain Sean Brennan saw a low shot across goal saved, before De Bie produced a stunning stop from Robise in the 33rd minute, after he had been played through by Brennan’s inch-perfect pass.

Try as they might, though, Saints could not get the equaliser before the break, and they ended up falling further behind six minutes into the second half.

Luis Binks chipped an angled ball into the area, with Dilan Markanday reaching it just before Jack Bycroft, chesting it past the Saints keeper and slotting into an empty net.

Three became four in the 66th minute, as Spurs substitute Rayan Clarke, who was not long on, showed sharp feet in the area to work himself space, ahead of firing a low strike past Bycroft.

Spurs then made it 5-1 in the 70th minute, as Phoneix Patterson shifted the ball onto his left foot on the edge of the box and struck a superb effort into the far top corner.

Christian Norton went close to reducing the deficit on a couple of occasions in the closing stages, heading just over and also hitting the bar, before substitute Rio Glean grabbed a consolation with what was almost the last kick of the game, firing into the far corner from a tight angle.