Fulham U21s v West Ham United U21s
Premier League 2 Division 1, Motspur Park, Friday 5 August, 3.00pm
Where & When etc…
West Ham United U21s get the 2022/23 Premier League 2 Division 1 season underway with a trip across London to face Fulham.
The Hammers will travel to Motspur Park – the Cottager’s Training Ground in New Malden – to face the newly promoted side on Friday 5 August.
Mark Robson’s young Irons will kick-off their new league campaign at 3.00pm on Friday after a pre-season schedule that saw the side win matches against Ebbsfleet United and AFC Bournemouth developmental side, while picking up a credible draw away to Dagenham & Redbridge last weekend.
Tickets…
Fulham have unfortunately advised that, due to the pitch that Friday’s match is being played on, capacity for spectators will be limited and has therefore been restricted to player guests and Season-card holders only.
West Ham United Season Ticket Holders are permitted to attend but must contact Fulham via [email protected] by 12pm on Thursday 4th August, providing their name and client reference number, should they wish to attend.
Travel…
The nearest train station to the Fulham FC Training Ground is Motspur Park, which sits on the South Western Railway.
Supporters travelling from east London are best suited to getting the Underground Central Line from Stratford to Bank, swapping onto the Waterloo & City Line to Waterloo and then catching a South Western Railway train to Motspur Park. The journey from Stratford to Motspur Park takes just under an hour.
Fans wishing to drive should note that parking is not guaranteed at Fulham’s Motspur Park training facility. To reach Motspur Park, take the M25 and exit at Junction 10, before following the A3 via the slip road into London.
After roughly 12 miles, Take the A2043 exit towards New Malden/Worcester Park and then, at the roundabout, take the 3rd exit onto Malden Rd/A2043.
How To Follow…
The U21’s first fixture of the 2022/23 season, away to Fulham, is unfortunately not available to watch via a live stream, but fans will be able to follow all the action in our live blog at whufc.com, which will begin one hour before kick-off at 2.00pm.
Highlights from the Hammers’ trip to the Cottagers will also be made available after the match at whufc.com and on the West Ham United YouTube channel shortly after, as will exclusive reaction from the fixture.
Team News…
Lead coach Mark Robson will be hopeful of having a near full squad of young professionals and development talent available to him for the season opener at Fulham.
The U21s have a host of Academy talent to choose from across the field, although availability will depend on who is selected to work closely with David Moyes’ first-team in the build-up to their Premier League opener against Manchester City on Sunday.
Conor Coventry came off the bench for the senior side in their final pre-season fixture, away to RC Lens at the weekend, while Divin Mubama and Harrison Ashby were both unused substitutes.
The seven players who signed their first professional terms in the summer – Jacob Knightbridge, Kaelan Casey, Michael Forbes, Junior Robinson, Regan Clayton, Archie Woods and George Earthy – will be eager to make their mark in competitive action if given the opportunity.
Opposition…
Life is good for Fulham U21s.
The young Cottagers side achieved promotion to Premier League 2 Division 1 last season after storming to promotion from Division 2, finishing top of the table by a clear 15 points, winning 20 of their 26 league outings.
Central to their success was an immense defensive record, with the west London side easily boasting the lowest goals conceded in the league. With 64 goals netted, Fulham were also the joint-top scorers in Division 2 last campaign.
In duo Luke Harris and Sonny Hilton, Fulham have two of the stand-out young midfield talent in Premier League 2. Harris netted 13 goals across the 2021/22 season while Hilton had a hand in 21 goals (nine goals and 12 assists) – including the winner in a 1-0 win away to our young Hammers in the Premier League Cup quarter-finals in April.
The U21s continued their fine form during pre-season too, claiming impressive wins over the likes of Rio Ave, AFC Bournemouth and Brentford.
Is Anything Different This Season?
It was confirmed by the Premier League over the summer that, from the start of the 2022/23 season, Premier League 2 would become an under-21s competition.
The amendment to the age limit, which was previously under-23, has been introduced as part of an ongoing review of the Elite Player Performance Plan to better align with the EFL Trophy and international competitions.
The rule change is designed to reflect the reality of the players in the competition, whose average is currently 19.
Clubs are, however, permitted to use five (previously three) over-age outfield players and one over-age goalkeeper, in order to transition from its under-23 format.
