Craig Short admitted that Derby County’s Under-23s were made to pay for their slow start against the reigning Premier League 2 champions Everton at Pride Park Stadium.
The Rams lost a tight meeting 1-0, with Toffees midfielder, Harry Charsley, netting the decisive goal just shy of the half hour mark on a wet night in Derbyshire.
It was a lead that was thoroughly deserved for the visitors going into the interval as Darren Wassall’s side struggled to deal with the visitors’ intense pressure, in and out of possession.
Short felt Derby were better in the second half, but Everton were dogged and gave very little away on the evening, holding the hosts at arm’s length to claim their 1-0 victory.
Assessing the game, he told RamsTV: “We played against a very good side, but we didn’t start very well for the first 45 minutes and that was disappointing.
“Everton were aggressive, they closed us down quickly, they worked hard and although in the past few games we have done well with the ball, I don’t think it was that sort of game tonight.
“We had to scrap and fight and we didn’t do that like they did in the first-half. They looked very, very, dangerous with the pace that they had.
“Everton are exactly the same as they were last year, they varied their game, they can go long, they’re physical and had a real threat up front, but it was good in the way that they responded.
“We had a good chat at half-time and we were better in the second half but I don’t think either ‘keeper has had a lot to do.
“We were up against a better side tonight without a doubt, but the good thing about this league is that we play top sides every week and these players can learn a lot from it.
“You can’t just talk about performances, you want results but it is not as important at this level as it is at first team level.
“We want to see a response. I’m pretty sure that this team will roll up their sleeves on Friday and have a good game against Manchester United.”
Several first team players featured for the Under-23s on the night with Craig Forsyth, Jason Shackell and Mason Bennett all getting 90 minutes under their belts.
George Thorne also started the match, but was withdrawn after just 15 minutes as he struggled with illness.
“George wasn’t feeling well before the game but we had already handed in the team sheet so we thought we’d see how he went,” Short added.
“You could tell he was struggling and it was the right decision to bring him off and I thought Joe Bateman did well when he came on.
“He is one of the younger ones and he came on in the midfield and did well in a difficult game.”
