FC Clacton U18s 1 Haverhill Rovers U18s 3
Haverhill Rovers U18's started their 2015-2016 Thurlow Nunn Youth League season with an impressive 3-1 victory against FC Clacton.
Due to unavailability for various reasons Haverhill were forced to make the long trip with just 12 players and this included three 15 year olds who were Milo Holmes (son of club legend Brian Holmes), Brandon Mckay and Aaron Wiseman.
Haverhill started the brighter of the two sides and created a couple of good goal scoring opportunities with lots of good play going through the lively Henrique, but could not break the deadlock. Rovers did however make the breakthrough at the midway point of the first half when a James Baughurst corner was directed goal wards by Aaron Wiseman and was touched in at close range by Brandon McKay for his first goal in U18's football, on his debut.
Rovers lead was soon doubled when an intelligent pass from James Baughurst found the impressive Lawrence Healey who used his pace to beat two Clacton defenders and coolly slot home. Clacton started to come back into the game towards the halfway mark but the Rovers defence of Wiffen, Shulver, Ruthven and Gardner stood firm and defended resiliently against the pressure. Rovers keeper James Philp also made two crucial saves in the dying minutes of the first half.
The second half continued in much the same fashion as the first with Rovers dominating the encounter and creating further chances. Tyrone Alleyne was introduced on the hour mark replacing Ruthven who suffered a dead leg. And the lead soon became 3-0 when Alleyne found Healey on the break who eased past two defenders to slide home his second of the night.
Clacton did score a consolation with two minutes to play with a well worked move that was finished with a powerful header past Philp. The game finished 3-1 and provided plenty of positives to take forward into the rest of the campaign.
ROVERS: Philp, Wiffen, Gardner, Holmes, Ruthven (Alleyne 60), Shulver, Healey, Baughurst, McKay, Henrique, Wiseman.
