Arsenal U18s 1-0 West Ham United U18s
U18 Premier League South
Shenley Training Centre
Tuesday 16 February 2021
West Ham United U18s were beaten 1-0 by Arsenal U18s in their latest U18 Premier League South fixture at the Shenley Training Centre on Tuesday afternoon.
A 92nd minute strike from Khayon Edwards snatched all three points for the Gunners in north London after a tightly contested affair.
The loss sees the Hammers stay tenth in the league table, still awaiting their first win of the calendar year.
In a game of few opportunities, it was Jayden Fevrier who went closest for the boys in Claret and Blue.
The 17-year-old winger crashed his first-half effort off the post after skipping past two Arsenal defenders, going agonisingly close to giving West Ham the lead.
Both teams equipped themselves well defensively throughout and the game looked destined to be heading for a stalemate until the Hammers conceded a free kick in stoppage time wide on the left-hand side.
A whipped cross from Omari Hutchinson evaded the Irons' defence and found Edwards at the back post, and the forward applied a simple finish past Krisztian Hegyi to ensure the three points stayed in north London.
Speaking to whufc.com following the game, lead coach Kevin Keen expressed his disappointment at his side conceding with virtually the last kick of the contest.
“It was a really tight game and a really tough one for us to lose,” he said. “It’s made just that bit tougher because they’ve scored with the last kick of the game and that’s never easy to swallow at any level of football.”
“We were really pleased with the effort out there today and the boys will keep working hard in order to improve as a team.”
“It’s difficult to concede so late-on as I thought it was an improved defensive performance, we really limited Arsenal to only a few opportunities and unfortunately they’ve taken one right at the end.”
West Ham United U18s now turn their attention to the visit of Brighton & Hove Albion U18s on Saturday 27 February, we’ll have all the post-match reaction on www.whufc.com.
West Ham United U18s: Hegyi (GK), Robinson, Trialist, Adebayo, Clayton, Potts, Woods (Heal 68’, Fevrier, Trialist (Mubama 71), Swyer (Perkins 58), Corbett
Subs not used: Roach (GK), Earthy
Booked: Woods, Fevrier
