Lead coach Kevin Keen was pleased with the manner in which West Ham United U18s saw off the challenge of Reading U18s at Little Heath on Saturday morning.
Having controlled large stretches of the first half and put the game to bed in the second, the Hammers’ youth team got their U18 Premier League South campaign off to a winning start with a 3-1 victory over the Royals.
In the first half, Sonny Perkins grabbed the first two goals of a perfect hat-trick – opening the scoring with a header from Lewis Orford’s cross before sliding the ball in at the near post with his right boot after being found by Junior Robinson’s clever pass – either side of Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan’s close-range equaliser for Reading.
That lead was extended midway through the second when Perkins won the ball near the halfway line and drove into the box, finishing well across goal with his left foot to seal three points for the West Ham youth team.
“I thought in the first half we played really well, played some good football and created lots of chances,” Keen told whufc.com.
“We slipped up a little bit letting them get back to 1-1, but Sonny Perkins made up for that with a fantastic finish for the second goal to make it 2-1 at half-time. We scored midway through the second half and I thought we were comfortable from there.
“There are lots of little bits to work on – certainly our fitness could be a little bit better and some of our game understanding – but I’m really pleased to win the first game 3-1, and certainly with the first half when we played some good ‘West Ham’ football.”
Perkins’ clinical hat-trick drew praise from the U18s lead coach, given that the second-year scholar has most often been played as a midfielder in his Academy career – but the 17-year-old, sporting a new shaven haircut, rose to the challenge in the Hammers’ hour of need.
“What makes it even more special was the fact that up until Monday we were playing Divin [Mubama] up front,” Keen revealed.
“Divin got injured last week so we had to come up with solutions as a staff, and it was [assistant coach] Mark Phillips who said, ‘play Sonny Perkins up front’.
“Sonny’s an attacking midfielder but we played him up front, and he’s listened and he’s worked hard this week. He’s a fantastic finisher anyway.
“The three goals he scored were all really good goals. The first two were good team goals, so I’m really pleased for him. Now, he’s got to keep his feet on the ground, keep working hard and stay switched on.
“Maybe it was the haircut – it might have been the haircut that did it!”
Former Academy graduate Keen amassed over 250 appearances in Claret and Blue in seven seasons between 1983 and 1993, before returning to the club as a coach in 2002 and again in 2019.
A true fans’ favourite, few coaches will therefore have as great an appreciation of the Club’s attacking philosophies and values of endeavour and heart as Keen, who was pleased to see those qualities represented on Saturday morning.
“I think it’s a strong group,” the U18s lead coach confirmed. “It’s a group with a fantastic mentality and togetherness that’s been built over not just this pre-season, but certainly over two or three years. It’s got a nice feel to it.
“I don’t want to get over-excited because we go to Crystal Palace next week and that will be really, really tough, but it’s nice to get off with a win and I think there’s more to come.
“Palace deservedly finished runners-up in U18 Premier League South last year to Fulham [on goal difference]. Those two were the standout teams in the league. They were organised and physical, but also had a little bit of magic.
“It’s going to be tough going there next week. They had a win today [a 3-1 win over Leicester City U18s] so it’s going to be a tough game. The lads have got to keep working hard, stick together, and hopefully we’ll get a couple of our injured players back and we’ll be alright.”
Elsewhere at the Academy of Football, West Ham United U23s return to Premier League 2 Division 1 action against Arsenal at London Stadium on Monday 16 August, with kick-off at 7pm.
Tickets are free for Season Ticket Holders and Claret Members. For non-members, tickets are priced at £5 for Adults and £3 for Concessions/Under-16s. Click here to book or click here for further information.
