West Ham United U21s 3-0 Birmingham City U21s
Premier League 2, Rush Green Stadium, Friday 19 September 2025, 7pm BST
West Ham United U21s extended our unbeaten run to three straight matches in all competitions with a deserved 3-0 win over Birmingham City.
Mark Robson’s young Hammers carried strong momentum into the clash at Rush Green Stadium, having recorded emphatic victories at MK Dons in the EFL Trophy on Tuesday and Sunderland in Premier League 2 before the September international break.
The Irons never looked back after taking an early lead thanks to George Earthy’s well-taken effort, and he was quickly joined on the scoresheet by Callum Marshall as we went into the break with a commanding lead.
Substitute Elisha Sowunmi added a third in the second half, capping off an outstanding team performance that secured back-to-back league successes.
With Birmingham City coming into this game unbeaten in their opening three league matches, this looked to be a difficult encounter against the Blues, but we were dominant throughout and quickly set out our stall.
We nearly had the dream start when an intricate, flowing move, involving Preston Fearon, Gabriel Caliste, Mohamadou Kanté, Jethro Medine and Emeka Adiele, ended with Earthy having his shot saved.
But five minutes later, we set the tone for a dominant display when Earthy put us ahead after 16 minutes.
After switching the ball effectively from left to right, some brilliant close control from Fearon saw him collect a lofted pass and find Earthy, who got on the wrong side of his marker before firing the ball in the opposite direction past William O’Sullivan to net the opener.
A second goal felt inevitable, and having been denied moments earlier, Marshall then more than made amends as he doubled our lead, when he latched onto Earthy’s slide-rule pass and rifled a left-footed drive beyond O’Sullivan.
As the team pushed forward in search of a third, they were only denied by a superb save from O’Sullivan, with the goalkeeper keeping out Medine’s close-range header.
With half-time approaching, though, our trialist goalkeeper had to be at his most alert to snuff out the danger after Daniel Isichei, Menzi Mazwi and Cameron Eubank all tried their luck multiple times.
That seemed to take the sting out of West Ham’s intensity, but we clicked into gear soon after the restart when Earthy deftly chipped the ball over the City defence and into the path of Kanté, but as he stretched to poke the ball home, he could only direct it over the crossbar.
Despite the two-goal advantage, the young Hammers continued to press for more goals, and after just eight minutes on the pitch, Sowunmi secured the points with his first-ever Premier League 2 goal.
Earthy and Marshall were the creators, with the former intercepting a loose pass on the edge of the box and sliding a perfectly weighted ball out wide to Marshall, who got down the right and cut the ball back to the 18-year-old, and he steered it pinpoint into the bottom corner to secure a moment he’ll not forget in a hurry.
Robson’s side continued to push and carve out attacking openings, as Sowunmi fired off target from close range with the goal at his mercy, but the scoreline remained 3-0 as we recorded back-to-back PL2 victories.
West Ham United U21s: Trialist, Medine (Colau 71), Oyebade (Brown 81), Golambeckis ©, Mayers, Adiele, Fearon (Akpata 68), Kanté, Caliste (Sowunmi 71), Earthy, Marshall
Sub not used: Awesu (GK)
Goals: Earthy 16, Marshall 24, Sowunmi 79
Booked: Mayers, Colau
Birmingham City U21s: O'Sullivan, Da Silva, Quirk, Burrell ©, Eubank (Ruiz Rente 83), Mazwi, Tattum (Guernier 47), Bateman (Boakye 88), Isichei, Willis, Betteka (Maddox 61)
Sub not used: Birmingham (GK)
Robson: It was a deserved win and a good challenge for us
West Ham United Lead Coach Mark Robson was pleased that his team came through a difficult test against a previously unbeaten Birmingham City side in Friday’s Premier League 2 tie, and felt we were good value for our victory in RM7.
He said: “We’ve had two games in three days, so it’s been a real tough few days for the boys, but as Steve [Potts] said at the end of the game, this is what you've got to get used to when you go out on loan and play in the EFL Championship, League One or League Two, so it was a nice test and challenge for the boys. I thought physically we were excellent, and to get a win as well was really good.
“I think we went to press tonight, really high up the pitch, and the boys put into that, and it's brilliant to watch. We want players to be able to compete at a high level, and to be able to do that, you've got to be able to run, and we certainly had that in both aspects today.
“We force teams into mistakes, and we end up winning the ball back quite a bit of the time, and our third goal was an example of that, as it came from pressure and Birmingham City losing the ball, and we finished it off.
"We've played some really good football, and we've scored some really good goals. There's a massive work ethic amongst all the players. There were a few players that came in today and had to make their mark and worked really hard.
“I think it's healthy that we're playing well, and it's also healthy because it's raising everybody's standards and levels, and of course, ultimately, we want to try and help these boys as much as we can get to where they want to get to, and that's first-team football or going out on loan somewhere where they can get some goals and experience.
“Having George [Earthy] and Callum [Marshall] with us has been fantastic, and it gives all the younger ones a bit of inspiration and shows them where they should be as well. It's great to have them because they rub off on everybody else.”
Fearon: It was a really strong performance from us
Midfielder Preston Fearon turned in another outstanding performance in our win over Birmingham City on Friday, contributing an assist in a superb attacking display.
The 18-year-old, who continues to go from strength to strength in Claret and Blue, says the young Hammers' ruthless first-half display at Rush Green Stadium was the catalyst for our commanding victory over the Blues.
Fearon said: “It was a really good performance. We had to go into the game with the right mindset, but for the first 30 minutes, we were outstanding, and Steve [Potts] said it’s where we won the game, as we started so strongly.
“No matter who you play, you have to go out with a fast start and the right mindset, whether it's Manchester City, Chelsea or Birmingham City. From the start, we knew our quality would show, we just had to run, make the right decisions and get goals, and that’s what we did.
“I’m really happy to get another assist, and I just need to keep it going. Coming into the U21s last year, I didn't get any goals or assists, so I got myself worked up about that a bit, but to get two goals the other night [against MK Dons] and an assist today, I’m really happy, and I want to keep it going and hopefully get a few more.
“It’s been really good playing alongside players like Callum [Marshall] and George [Earthy]. They give a lot of confidence to us, and every time they come down, they work hard, their quality shows, and it just helps us young ones out a lot.”
