- West Ham's U18s ended their Premier League South campaign in fourth place
- That ensures qualification for Division One of Premier League Phase Two
- Assistant boss Mark Phillips says he and manager Steve Potts are delighted
U18s assistant manager Mark Phillips has expressed delight at his U18s qualifying, yet again, for Division One of Premier League Phase Two.
All eyes were on Fulham who needed a victory at home to Norwich City on Saturday, but despite taking a 2-0 lead, the Cottagers ended up drawing the fixture, which ensured the Hammers’ place in the top four.
It is the third time in four seasons that the U18s have finished among the elite academy teams and they will face some very tough tests in the coming months. However, Phillips is looking forward to the challenge facing his players.
“We are very delighted to finish in the top four,” he declared. “It’s going to give the boys a real challenge in the coming months and it’s one I know they’ll be looking forward to.
“You want to be playing against the best sides because it’s about development at the end of the day, but it looked like it wasn’t going to happen at one point during Saturday.
It’s going to give the boys a real challenge in the coming months and it’s one I know they’ll be looking forward to
Mark Phillips
“I saw Fulham were 2-0 up and then thought ‘we won’t make it’ but Norwich fought back and we’ve sneaked into the top four. We’ve certainly done it the hard way!”
The Hammers finished in the South Division top four alongside Chelsea, Arsenal and Reading and they will meet the top four from the North Division – Manchester City, Manchester United, Liverpool and Blackburn Rovers.
Each side will play each other once over the next couple of months, with fixtures set to be announced in due course.
Phillips looked back on the South campaign with fondness and said it was a “great achievement” for his young group of players.
“We’ve played lots of U16s this season and, especially against Chelsea in our last match, they did very well and were probably in our top five players on the day,” Phillips continued.
“I think the eventual winners of the FA Youth Cup are in the top group – Chelsea or Man City – so it’s going to be great to test ourselves against the best.”