Liverpool u19 0 Man City u19 1 (Nov 18 2000)

[TLW]

LIVERPOOL U19 0 Man City U19 1

Report by Dave Usher at the Academy

Scorer(s) - Half Time - 0-1 Venue - The Academy Date - Sat 18 Nov 2000 Star Man - John Welsh

 

 

 

 

 

This was a game the reds should never have lost. They didn't play that well, but were still the better side and deserved a point at the very least. Unfortunately, poor finishing was to prove costly, as a solitary first half strike from Leon Mike was enough to give City the points.

The first half was pretty even on the whole, with Ian Armstrong going close twice with left footed efforts, the first being well saved, and the second going agonisingly wide. Hughie MacAuley named an unchanged side from the one which were held to a goalless draw by Blackburn the week before, and once again the invention of the likes of Miles and Foley was sorely missed.

The reds best moves came down the left hand side, where Warnock, Torpey and Olsen linked up to good effect on a few occasions, notably for the first of 'Army's' chances, but on the whole there were too many long balls played up to Armstrong and Chris Thompson. Thompson once again started up front, but an early injury to Brian McIlroy forced a change, with Neil Mellor coming on to partner Armstrong, and 'Tommo' switching to his more accustomed role of the right hand side.

City were looking dangerous on the break, and could have been two up already before eventually taking the lead with a highly dubious goal. Mike, who's a dead ringer for George Weah, looked a mile offside, but to be to him took the well brilliantly, managing to elude the valiant effort of Warnock before sticking it away in the bottom corner. City had earlier been denied by a fine save by Peter Crookes, as he stuck out a leg to divert a shot onto the post, and then could have made it 2-0 when Mike raced clear only to balloon his shot high and wide.

At this stage, the reds were at sixes and sevens, and Cavanagh and Warnock had a bit of a falling out over marking at a set piece. Warnock's frustration then boiled over when the referee failed to spot a blatant shove in his back, so he took his own retribution by clattering City's right winger and picking up a booking.

He's an abrasive character is Stevie. He had a falling out with Everton's right back a few weeks ago, and also with Blackburn's number 2 last week. He's highly competitive, and that's one of the reasons why I reckon he'll go all the way.

Anyway, that chance of City's was to be their last, as the reds began to take a grip of things, with young John Welsh in fantastic form again in central midfield. Welsh and Olsen started to control the game, but for all their possession, the reds youngsters weren't creating much.

The second half was all Liverpool, and the game started to get a little bit tasty. Welsh was clattered with a late challenge from his opposite number, and Jamie Olsen didn't take too kindly to it at all, racing over for a spot of handbags with the City lad. The City player was booked, and it was no surprise when a couple of minutes later 'Ollie' clattered him and was also awarded a yellow card for his troubles. He'd been biding his time, and the first chance got, whack!

The closest the reds came to an equaliser was when Thompson shot just wide after a brilliant move involving Welsh and Cavanagh. Mellor also squandered a glorious opportunity when he shot straight at the keeper when clean through, and despite a few close calls from corners, City held on for an underserved victory.

For the reds, Welsh was outstanding, and Otsemebor and McNulty recovered from a shaky start to completely dominate the City attackers. Cavanagh also had a steady game at right back. The last two weeks have been disappointing, but John Miles and Michael Foley are two of the side's best players, and they aren't easily replaced.


TEAM: Peter Crookes; Peter Cavanagh, Jon Otsemobor, Steven McNulty, Steve Warnock; Brian McIlroy (Neil Mellor), Jamie Olsen, John Welsh, Steve Torpey (Alan Coupe); Ian Armstrong, Chris Thompson:



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