U18s hold Foxes

West Ham United Under-18s extended their unbeaten FA Premier Academy League run to four matches with a hard-fought 1-1 draw at Leicester City.

Schoolboy forward Dylan Tombides was on target for Tony Carr's side, opening the scoring early on before the Foxes - unbeaten all season in the league - battled back to earn a share of the spoils with a second-half equaliser.

Midfielder Conor Okus could have stolen a victory for the visitors, only to fire his shot straight at the Leicester goalkeeper after breaking through late in the game.

Academy Director Carr named a young side for the trip to the Midlands, with no fewer than four U16s in his starting lineup, with three more schoolboys among the substitutes.

Carr was pleased with the efforts of his players on a wet day at Leicester's Aylestone training base.

"We did well considering they are unbeaten all season in the Academy League," said Carr. "We took the lead and might even have won the game, but it wasn't to be.

"Leicester had corner after corner early in the second half and they finally made one count, but we defended very well."

Jake Young made his second start at U18 level at right-back, while England U16 midfielder Blair Turgott, Dominic Vose and goalscorer Tombides were also involved from the kick-off.

Schoolboy Declan Hunt was handed his first taste of action at this level, while Turgott's international team-mate Matthias Fanimo was also introduced as a second-half substitute.

West Ham are now unbeaten in four Academy League matches, having drawn with Ipswich Town, Reading and Leicester and beaten Crystal Palace in the past month.