Derby County Under 18s fell victim to a late penalty that confirmed a 2-1 defeat to Newcastle United at their academy grounds.
It was Elliott Anderson that was the thorn in the side of the away team, as he completed a brace either side of Archie Brown’s equaliser. Anderson’s second came in the form of a last minute penalty, that would eventually secure his side three points.
The Rams are still without a win in three games now, but may feel hard done by after a mostly positive performance - especially in the second-half.
The first chance of the game fell to Derby, as Brown started one of his many mazing runs down the left hand side. The attacker latched onto a low-driven cross but saw his effort blocked by Lewis Brennan just in front of goal.
Brown was back in the action only moments later as he burst through the Newcastle defence, but could only drag his narrow-angled attempt just wide of the target.
Despite The Rams’ early attempts it was The Magpies with the opening goal. Anderson expertly brought a lofted ball down and showed clever feet to trick his marker in the box. The home-side attacker dragged the ball away from Harry Halwax and finished calmly under the keeper.
Derby went into the second half with full force, generating a myriad of attacking chances. Brown was heavily involved yet again as his pace and trickery consistently overpowered the Newcastle full-back.
Liam Thompson also impressed throughout the game, showing good strength and control in the middle of the park. The midfielder came close to scoring 60 minutes in as he generated his own space, and glanced a curling effort just over the bar.
Brown equalised the scoreline with less than ten minutes to play. The electric attacker proved to be lively in the box as Jaden Charles sent in a ball for the winger to scoop into the net, completing a superb individual performance.
Newcastle scored their winner from the penalty spot after Harrison Solomon was deemed to have tripped his opponent in the box. Anderson made no mistake and fired high into the net, over the outstretched Halwax.
What’s to come…
The Rams will be hoping that their now-improved performances will generate a good result, and end a run of three successive defeats, as they next host Middlesbrough
Justin Walker’s side will be hoping to repeat their last league performance against the side last season, that saw them run out 2-0 and 3-2 winners in each fixture.
Derby then face a tough game against Manchester United’s under-18 side two weeks after.
The northern club managed to go unbeaten against The Rams last season as they managed a 2-1 win and a 2-2 draw. Hopefully the team can get a good performance against middlesborough and carry on their form into this tricky fixture.
Next Five…
Derby County Under-18s Vs Middlesbrough Under-18s- Saturday 31st August 2019 (kick-off: 1pm)
Derby County Under-18s Vs Manchester United Under-18s- Saturday 14th September 2019 (kick-off: 12pm)
Stoke City Under-18s Vs Derby County Under-18s- Saturday 21st September 2019 (kick-off: 11am)
Derby County Under-18s Vs Blackburn Rovers- Saturday 5th October 2019 (kick-off: 12:30pm)
Sunderland Under-18s Vs Derby County Under-18s- Saturday 19st October 2019 (kick-off: 11am)
Words by Jake Dance