Reading U21s 0-3 West Ham United U21s
Premier League 2, Select Car Leasing Stadium, Monday 24 February 2025, 7pm GMT
West Ham United U21s extended their winning run in Premier League 2 to six games, with goals from Josh Ajala, Sean Moore and Kamarai Swyer securing a commanding 3-0 victory over Reading U21s. Their latest victory and clean sheet not only consolidates their place within the top three, but also sees the young Hammers claim the best defensive record in the 26-team division.
A tightly contested first half saw both sides create chances, but with neither able to find a breakthrough.
The young Hammers almost had their defence breached when Louie Holzman struck the crossbar in the 23rd minute before Fin Herrick reacted quickly to deny Billy Bodin’s follow-up effort. West Ham's best opportunity of the first half came on the half-an-hour mark, when Swyer latched onto Kaelan Casey’s long throw. Though his initial effort was blocked, Lewis Orford pounced on the loose ball and forced a sharp low save from Reading goalkeeper Tom Norcott.
Goalless at the break, Mark Robson’s side wasted no time imposing themselves in the second half. Just four minutes after the restart, Dan Rigge’s high press paid off winning possession high up the pitch, feeding Josh Ajala, who sent the goalkeeper the wrong way to score his 15th goal of the season.
Ajala gives the 'keeper the eyes 👀 pic.twitter.com/FJKrLNGZ8o
— West Ham United (@WestHam) February 24, 2025
Reading looked for a response, with Tyler Sackey playing Shay Spencer through in the 56th minute, but the forward fired wide under pressure. That miss proved costly as West Ham doubled their lead a few minutes later with a stunning team goal. Rigge danced past two defenders before finding Swyer, who released Josh Briggs on the right wing. The wing-back turned his marker inside out before delivering a perfect cross into the penalty area for Sean Moore, whose diving header went in off the post.
The West Ham way 💫 pic.twitter.com/v9nalXppj0
— West Ham United (@WestHam) February 24, 2025
With control of the game, West Ham managed possession expertly in the closing stages, frustrating Reading while waiting for their moment to strike again. That chance came in stoppage time, as Kamarai Swyer sealed the victory on the counter-attack, keeping his composure to slot home and wrap up yet another impressive performance.
Mark Robson’s side now turn their attention to a trip north to face Derby County U21s on Friday, still holding a game in hand on the teams above them.
Reading U21s: Norcott, Yiadom ©, Beacroft, Rushesha (Barough 87), Holzman, Borgnis, Akande, Spencer (Senga 87), Bodin, Sackey, Abrefa
Subs not used:
Booked: Holzman, Borgnis
West Ham United U21s: Herrick, Briggs, Mayers (Brown 90), Akpata (Fearon 89), Golambeckis, Casey ©, Swyer, Orford, Ajala, Rigge (Robinson 77), Moore
Subs not used: Terry (GK), Landers
Goals: Ajala 49, Moore 64, Swyer 90+3
Booked: Briggs
Robson: We can feel the Ollie effect on everybody
West Ham United U21s’ sixth league win puts them four points clear of Chelsea in fourth place with a game in hand. A clean sheet to add to the three points, lead coach Mark Robson’s side now boast the best defensive record in the division.
Reflecting on the game, he said: “I thought we knew we'd be in for a tough game. They’re quite a direct team, turned us round quite a bit early on. They had a few senior players in their squad, but that's what we want, it's good because it shows our boys can do it against league players. I thought we handled them really well today and restricted them to limited chances. The work ethic from all the players today, even the finishers that came on, I thought was really good. They really stood up to a tough test.
“The first half we perhaps should have done a little bit better than what we did in terms of the final pass. But we said at half-time, if we just concentrate a little bit more around what that looks like and up our quality a little bit, we'll cause them problems. The finishing was excellent, so I’ve got to give credit to Gerard Prenderville [assistant coach] for the work that he's been doing with the boys in terms of finishing. All three goals were excellent finishes.
"Another clean sheet as well. The work Steve [Potts] does with them and how hard they worked as a team has really shown. We’ve now got the best defensive record in the league so what we're doing is working and credit goes not just to the players, but the staff as well."
Following Ollie Scarles’ excellent performance on his full Premier League debut, coach Robson spoke about what he described as the ‘Ollie effect’ and how it has boosted and motivated his players as well as his staff.
“I think the opportunity that's come along, not just for Ollie [Scarles] but for Lew [Orford], and Kaelan [Casey] has given everyone a big boost.
“We can feel the Ollie effect on everybody, not just the players, but the staff as well, it's really lifted everybody. He’s done so well in the Arsenal game. He didn’t look out of place at all. He played very well, defended really well. There's just a real nice feel at the moment around the place. Everybody's got a belief that there's going to be chances for our younger players if they're doing very well. I think that's lifted everybody at the training ground and long may it continue.”
In his third consecutive league start for the U21s, defender Josh Briggs impressed once again with a great assist to set up Sean Moore for West Ham’s second. As Moore headed home, the whole team, including the goalscorer, rushed over to celebrate with Briggs.
“We've got a really good group of lads, not just this season but for the last few seasons. They're very together. [Josh] Briggsy has been quite limited this season in terms of game time. He had a little injury before Christmas, but he's having a nice run of games at the moment and be fair to him, he's done very well. He really deserves to be in the team. It was a fantastic little bit of play from him, a great bit of skill and a lovely little ball dropped into the back post, which is something that we talked about in training and worked on yesterday.”
Finally, Robson reserved a special mention for U16 full-back Riley Ebho. Having made his first start for the U18s at Chelsea on Saturday, Ebho followed the development squad’s matchday itinerary with his U21s teammates.
“It was really good to have Riley around us today, showing him the development set-up before he goes on international duty with England. He’s a great kid and he’s been impressing everyone with his performances in the U16s and U18s. We were really close to including him in the matchday, but Ezra [Mayers] made a quick recovery from illness. He’s fully deserved this opportunity and I hope there’s plenty more to come.”
