Lots of learning for the Young Terriers in Germany
- Huddersfield Town Under-19s compete in the TTL Cup
- Fourth placed finish for Dean Whitehead’s side
- Loss on penalties to Bayern Munich only blockade to the final
Huddersfield Town’s Under-19 players will have learned a lot from their latest tournament experience, finishing fourth in the International TTL Cup in Altötting, Germany.
The Young Terriers, led by Dean Whitehead, qualified for the semi-finals of the one-day ‘blitz’ tournament and only lost out to Bayern Munich on penalties to prevent an appearance in the final.
Town were dealt an early blow when centre back Oran Thompson was ruled out of the tournament with concussion after a collision just 30 seconds into the first game against 1. FC Nürnberg, with Whitehead’s men eventually losing 2-1.
The highlight of that game was new signing Kai Herbert’s goal that briefly pulled Town level; a lob over the goalkeeper after the impressive Sam Sharrock-Peplow’s ball towards striker Kit Elliott was only partially cleared by the goalkeeper.
The second group game heralded a 1-0 win over the Under-19 group of German third division side SpVgg Unterhaching in a game that Town dominated. The winner came early on, with skipper and talisman Scott High curling a ball into the top corner in emphatic fashion.
That game showcased the ability of High, Sharrock-Peplow and in particular the hold-up play of Kit Elliott, whilst goalkeeper Jacob Chapman – who had a fine tournament – produced several superb saves, adding to a penalty save in the first game.
That win was enough to see Town progress to the semi-final, where the daunting task of facing Bayern Munich’s Under-19s awaited.
However, Whitehead’s side took the game to their illustrious opponents. Elliott forced the goalkeeper into a stunning save just 10 minutes in, but there was nothing he could do for the opener when it eventually came 21 minutes in. Sharrock-Peplow’s ball towards the striker was half-cleared and fell to 17-year-old winger Andrew Ijiwole, who stepped infield before sending a rocket of a shot into the top corner!
Bayern started to apply some pressure towards the end of the game and Chapman performed admirably again, but he could do nothing with the equaliser two minutes from time.
That meant penalties, and the excellent High was unfortunate to miss his penalty in an otherwise faultless shootout.
Town were defeated in the third/fourth Play-Off, but that didn’t sour what had been another productive learning experience.
