Dan Rigge was instrumental as West Ham United U18s beat Tottenham Hotspur 3-1 on Saturday.
Three days after a fantastic victory against Ipswich Town in the FA Youth Cup quarter-finals, the Irons were back to winning ways in the league in a Londond derby.
Callum Marshall gave the Hammers an early lead, but Tottenham hit back after half-time courtesy of Damola Ajayi. Rigge’s excellent strike restored West Ham’s lead and the attacking midfielder provided a late assist as Marshall secured his brace.
The Irons have now moved 18 points clear at the top of the U18s Premier League South table, and Rigge was delighted with the hard fought win.
“It was a really big win,” Rigge told whufc.com. “We came into the game off the back of a big result against Ipswich in the Youth Cup so it was important for us to put that to one side. It was a massive high for us but we knew that we needed to focus on the Tottenham match.
“We’ve been doing really well in the league and our aim was to keep that up. We’re at the top of the league at the moment but we need to keep winning matches if we want to win the league.
"It was a huge three points and it’s another step towards our goal. We know that there’s still a way to go so we need to push on again from this result.”
Rigge started Saturday's game on the bench, after a number of weeks out due to injury, but was called into action sooner than planned. The 16-year-old was introduced just eleven minutes into the fixture, replacing Favour Fawunmi.
He continued: “You’ve always got to be ready to come on. I’ve missed a few games with an injury and I’ve been working hard to get back onto the pitch. I came on earlier that planned but it was brilliant to return with a goal and an assist. It’s always great to help the team and it was a fantastic result to return to.”
A goal and an assist from the midfielder helped the Hammers take the advantage in the second half against Spurs, and Rigge was thrilled with his own impact.
“It was a nice goal,” Rigge smiled. “I passed the ball wide to Tyron Akpata who crossed the ball into the box. The defender cleared the cross but the ball came to me and I was able to take a really good first touch. I saw that I had a shooting opportunity and I managed to curl the ball into the corner.
“The third goal was a really important one. I got the ball on the half-turn and I saw Callum making a good run, as he always does. Luckily I was able to play the ball through to him and we always trust Callum to score and he did.”
The young Hammers now face an exciting end to the season, with six league matches remaining and an FA Youth Cup semi-final on the horizon.
Whilst Rigge is looking forward to the remainder of the season, he suggested that the side will have to be at their best if they want to achieve their goals.
He added: “We are all pleased with how the season has gone so far and we are all excited for the rest of the season. We can’t wait for the next round of the Youth Cup.
“We just need to keep working hard. We’re in a great position in two competitions. We’d love to win the league and we’d love to make it through to the Youth Cup final.”
