West Ham United U18s climbed to the top of U18 Premier League South with a thrilling 3-2 victory against Brighton and Hove Albion.
Kevin Keen’s side saw off the Seagulls in a thrilling contest at Little Heath, moving the young Irons two points clear at the top of the league ahead of a huge match with fellow title challengers Southampton this weekend.
The Hammers claimed a two-goal advantage at half-time courtesy of Gideon Kodua’s early goal and Divin Mubama’s spot-kick.
However, the away side would find two quickfire goals from the visitors set up an anxious end to the fixture for both teams. The winning goal would be West Ham’s as Callum Marshall finished off a superb team move to clinch the win on 85 minutes.
The young Irons have now won ten of their last eleven league matches and are unbeaten in the league since September.
“I think it was a pretty even game,” U18s lead coach Kevin Keen said. “I think the score line maybe flattered us a bit because they had a few opportunities.
“Having said that though, Junior [Robinson] did fantastically well for the first goal and Gideon [Kodua] scores again. For the second goal Gideon showed grit and hard work and won a penalty which Divin finished really well.
“I wouldn’t say that it was our most fluid game of football or our best performance of the season but at the end of the day we dug in and got the win which keeps us in and around the business end of the table.”
West Ham started impressively against Albion and registered their first shot on target inside the opening minute. Regan Clayton’s low driven shot seemed destined for the bottom right corner but Brighton goalkeeper Killian Cahill got down well to parry the ball away.
The Hammers continued to push and took the lead on six minutes. Kaelan Casey played a brilliant ball out to Junior Robinson on the right flank, who controlled the ball superbly with his head to beat his man. The full-back sprinted to the byline and fired across the face of goal, where Kodua was on hand to slide in and score.
The away side almost hit back instantly as Billie Clark found himself one on one with Mason Terry. The Brighton man set himself and attempted to curl the ball into the far post, but Terry was out impressively and made a crucial save.
Brighton continued to grow into the game, with Clark again testing the home side on the half-hour mark. The tricky winger beat two West Ham defenders in a powerful run into the box but Casey slid in, executing his tackle to perfection just as Clark was about to fire on goal.
Casey’s heroics were crucial and, just moments later, West Ham were awarded a penalty after some determined play by Kodua.
Mubama calmly stepped up and dispatched, sending the goalkeeper the wrong way.
Two goals ahead at half-time, the U18s almost put the game out of sight just after half time. Archie Woods chipped the ball into Robinson who brought it down on his chest. He found Kodua in space and the No10 fired the ball towards goal. Cahill saved well but could only send it back into the path of George Earthy. His shot was blocked, and Clayton was only able to fire over on the follow up.
The 2-0 lead was halved on 52 minutes when Brighton were awarded a free-kick. Joshua Duffus stepped up for the away team and, from distance, offered his side a lifeline via the bottom corner.
Perhaps caught out by Brighton’s first, the Irons conceded the equaliser just three minutes later. Bailey Smith clipped the ball into the box and Shim Mheuka was on hand to head the ball into the net.
Finely poised, the remainder of the match saw both sides push hard for a vital winner, with Woods coming close for the U18s before Smith hit the post for Brighton.
It would take a real moment of quality to secure the three points and West Ham found exactly that on 85 minutes. Woods clipped the ball into the patch of Mubama in the box, who creatively flicked the ball into the path of Marshall. The second half substitute gratefully swept the ball into the bottom right corner of the net, generating scenes of jubilation.
U18s lead coach Keen was delighted with his team’s win against a resilient Brighton side.
“Brighton gave us some real problems. Their attacking play was really good. To be 2-0 up at half time was great for us because Mason [Terry] made a really important save in the first half and Kaelan [Casey] made a tremendous last-ditch tackle.
“Brighton came out and did well in the second half and got it back to 2-2 but this group has got something about them. We have a real togetherness which we keep going on about and we also have the impact of our substitutes.
“Obviously the winning goal was superb, Archie [Woods] clipped in a fantastic ball, Divin [Mubama] made a great run and from there it was clever play and a great finish from Callum [Marshall].”
Keen admitted to some disappointment at his side's start to the second period, but was thrilled with the response in coming back to claim the win.
He added: “I thought Brighton looked good going forward. The free kick was obviously a really good goal and I thought that we lacked a little bit of marking for the second goal and that is something we have spoken about before this season. It’s not the best goal to concede from a defensive point of view.
“Brighton had a ten-minute period where they had momentum and were on top, but we hung in there, Mason made another great save and eventually we got the goal. That’s football.
"Everyone wants to win, win trophies and be in and around the top of the league. This is a group that works hard every single day, and the emotion came out when the goal went in. The lads enjoyed it when the ball hit the back of the net. We still had to see it out though and the lads were very professional.”
West Ham United U18s: Terry, Robinson, Clayton, Falase (Marshall 68), Casey, Forbes (c), Woods, Earthy, Mubama, Kodua (Coddington 82), Scarles (Orford 68)
Subs not used: Knightbridge (GK)
Goals: Kodua 6, Mubama 35 (pen), Marshall 85
Booked: Forbes, Scarles, Mubama, Orford