Mark Robson could not offer more praise for his West Ham United U21s’ showing in a superb 2-1 win away to EFL League One Cheltenham Town.
The young Hammers found themselves a goal behind at The Completely-Suzuki Stadium in Tuesday’s Papa Johns Trophy group stage match, but secured a deserved come-back thanks to goals from Will Greenidge and Freddie Potts.
In truth, the Irons could have scored even more against The Robins, offering a dominant showing across the pitch.
While the win was not enough to secure West Ham’s progression to the knock-out stages of the tournament, with the Hammers finishing third on goal difference, Robson’s pride in his team was clear.
“The boys were excellent tonight,” the lead coach told whufc.com. “We’re starting to put some really good performances together and play some really good football. I thought we thoroughly deserved to win against Cheltenham Town and we probably had enough chances to go three or four up.
“We’re a bit disappointed with their goal. It was a mistake that didn’t really need to happen, but the boys have clawed their way back into it. We’ve stayed calm and in control, and played the right way. Some of the performances today from the lads were excellent.
“I’m disappointed for the boys to not go through because they’ve won two games against EFL opposition in our group, but unfortunately we’ve missed out on goal difference. I’m so delighted for the win though. We really needed the win. We got a good draw against Blackburn Rovers and then beaten an established league side, and beaten them well.”
Some of the U21s best showings so far this season have been in the Papa Johns Trophy, with the development team also beating Walsall while falling to an undeserved defeat at MK Dons.
Robson said the big showings against EFL opposition would prove a massive benefit for his young side.
“For the boys, this is important. It’s important to come to play against league opposition, when there are scouts and other managers watching, which puts our players in the limelight a bit – particularly when they play as well as that.
“I have to say, everybody in our team today showed they are capable of playing league football. We want to get these boys not just in our U21s and trying to get in the first team, but also out on loan like a few of them are this season. You couldn’t help but notice how good some of our boys either during this game.”
As a hectic October schedule begins to finally show signs of slowing down, Robson is delighted with how his team are coming through a tough run of fixtures.
Big performances throughout the month have started to yield the right results, something the lead coach is thrilled to see.
He added: “The lads are getting fitter because the games are relentless at the moment. It’s been a massive learning curve for them because we don’t often get a schedule as busy as this.
“We’ve gone Saturday to Tuesday every week throughout October and it’s been really tough on the lads, but I have to say that they have come through it superbly. From a physical aspect, they’re coming through it with flying colours, and they’re only going to get better.”
