Day 2 Champions Trophy
- Town progress to Monday’s Semi-Finals
- Matty Daly scores twice in Fortuna Düsseldorf win
- 0-0 draw against Legia Warschau concludes the group stages
Mark Hudson’s U19s have confirmed a place in the Semi-Finals of the U19 Champions Trophy in Düsseldorf. The team remained unbeaten as they beat host Fortuna Düsseldorf 2-0 thanks to goals from Matty Daly and followed that result with a 0-0 draw against Legia Warschau.
The first game of the day came against host Fortuna Düsseldorf who was struggling, having lost two of its three games. Town’s starting line-up consisted of a full debut for new signing Jake Barrett and he would be completing the back four at right back while Ben Jackson moved up to the wing. Olly Dyson started as the lone striker.
The pitch had taken some noticeable damage due to the amount of action it had seen over the weekend as well as rainy conditions and the surface made it difficult for Town’s passing game to grow into fruition in the early stages.
Barrett was very involved as he was fouled twice in quick succession. The second gave Mason O’Malley a chance to pick out someone with a cross but he could only find the first man. Isaac Marriott was on hand to stop the Fortuna counterattack.
After the first 15 minutes, Town settled and Matty Daly came close to breaking the deadlock. He was played in behind with a neat pass that evaded the Fortuna defence. Daly took the ball round the ‘keeper but found himself at a tight angle and could only hit his effort over.
Minutes later and Town came close again to scoring the opening goal. A good delivery from a Dom Tear corner was inches away from finding the head of Romoney Crichlow-Noble.
Town was pressing Fortuna and got its reward on the stroke of half time. Matty Daly arrived to meet an excellent low cross and the Town player finished into the empty net. The goal was the last kick of the half and temporarily sent Town joint top of the Group 1 table.
The second half began with Town eager to add to their advantage. The Fortuna goalkeeper was needed to tip away a header in the 28th minute but two minutes later, Town scored the second goal of the game.
Olly Dyson cut in well from the left flank and hit a driven effort towards goal. The keeper got down low to save but Matty Daly was in the right place to strike a shot towards goal. The ball looped up over the grounded goalkeeper and tapped the post on its way in.
The goal gave Town a comfortable two goal cushion and the Young Terriers were dictating the play at this point. Jordan Williams, Sam Gibson and Ben Mills all entered the play in the place of Scott High, Dom Tear and Olly Dyson. The substitutes saw Jake Barrett move to play alongside Isaac Marriott in the midfield.
The last chance of the game came for Mason O’Malley whose free kick effort found the top left corner but the Fortuna goalkeeper moved across well to save.
The referee blew his whistle with the score at 2-0 and the result confirmed Town’s progression to the Semi-Final on Monday.
Town’s final Group Stage game came later that day against Legia Warschau and Mark Hudson rang the changes with Town’s qualification already sealed. Oran Thompson and Harrison Davison-Hale made their first appearances while Micah Obiero started up front.
Legia was looking for its first points of the tournament and started the game with two consecutive corners. Both were dealt with by Town as Harrison Davison-Hale came out to punch clear. At the other end, Ben Jackson made space down the left wing to fire in a cross but he couldn’t find Ben Mills at the far post.
The opening 20 minutes were limited of chances but Town was keeping the ball nicely. With no real incentive to attack, Town could maintain possession and look to build from the back.
With the game edging towards half time, Town had a chance to go ahead. A Ben Jackson corner was floated in and the referee spotted an infringement by the Legia defender and pointed to the spot. Dahomey Raymond stepped up to take the spot kick but the ‘keeper guessed the right way and saved his low attempt.
The saved spot kick was the last action of the half as the whistle went at 0-0. The half time break saw the introduction of Olly Dyson in place of Micah Obiero and five minutes later, Matty Daly was introduced for Isaac Marriott.
As the game approached the final ten minutes, Town had another penalty shout. Ben Mills received the ball in the Legia box and looked to have been knocked over by the defender, but the referee disagreed and booked Mills for simulation.
The game ended 0-0 with chances at minimum for both teams. The result meant Town progressed unbeaten to the Group Stage, taking 8 points from a possible 12. Town will now play the Semi-Final at 10:30 UK time on Monday 2 April 2018.
Town’s Starting Line-Up vs Fortuna Düsseldorf (4-2-3-1):
Luke Mewitt; Mason O’Malley, Rarmani Edmonds-Green, Romoney Crichlow-Noble, Jake Barrett; Scott High (Jordan Williams 36’), Isaac Marriott (Dahomey Raymond 46’); Ben Jackson, Matty Daly, Dom Tear (Sam Gibson 40’); Olly Dyson (Ben Mills 44’)
Unused subs:
Harrison Davison-Hale, Micah Obiero, Aaron Rowe, Oran Thompson
Town’s Starting Line-Up vs Legia Warschau (4-2-3-1):
Harrison Davison-Hale; Ben Jackson, Oran Thompson, Jake Barrett, Jordan Williams; Dahomey Raymond, Isaac Marriott (Matty Daly 30’); Ben Mills, Aaron Rowe (Scott High 37’), Sam Gibson; Micah Obiero (Olly Dyson 26’)
Unused subs:
Luke Mewitt, Mason O’Malley, Rarmani Edmonds-Green, Romoney Crichlow-Noble, Dom Tear
You can watch the Semi-Finals from the link at the bottom of the article below. Keep checking Town's dedicated Twitter Account @htafcAcademy for information on the game.
