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Courtesy of:- Ray Lo, and the Spurs List.
Premier Academy League, Group B
Woughton-on-the Green,
Milton Keynes
Saturday 7th January 2012, 11am
MK Dons U-18 v Spurs U-18
1(1) - 4(2)
(All White) (All Purple)
4-4-2 4-4-2
o.g. Ogilvie 23 Coulibaly 15, 60
Akindayini 38
McQueen 52
MK Dons:- Team included Burns, Plowright(Forrester 57), Ivey-Ward(C),
Coach - M. Dove
SPURS:- McGee, Sheriff, Ogilvie, McQueen, Ekong(C), Smith(Ward 89), Michael-Percil, Lameiras, Coulibaly(Angol 64), McBride(Coulthirst 46), Akindayini
Unused sub:- Granger
Coach - A. Inglethorpe
Ref - S. Jack
As there was no team-sheet I apologise for any errors in the teams. I arrived early for this match which gave me confidence for the return journey. (Ed:- Ray made a mad dash back to White Hart Lane for our FA Cup game against Cheltenham) The pitch looked very uneven and heavy which was not good news for our touch players, added to which there was a strong cross wind to contend with. Inglethorpe selected a mixed group of players mindful of the midweek trip to Cardiff for the FA Youth Cup.
Spurs lined up with Ekong and McQueen at the back with Sheriff on the right and Ogilvie on the left. Lameiras and Smith started in the centre of midfield with Percil on the right flank and McBride (returning after a long layoff) on the left. Akindayini and Coulibaly were paired up front.
Spurs started the first half attacking the north end with McQueen driving forward to fire wide. The Dons resonded with a free kick that was too high. Ogilvie turned a Lameiras corner wide at the far post. McBride showed that he had not lost his attacking play down the left with a couple of good runs but he was not providing good crosses.
McBride was quick to pounce when the keeper dallied with the ball and Coulibaly collected the loose ball and moved it left past Burns to score in the un-guarded net. Burns gave Coulibaly the ball with another bad clearance, but was thankful to his defenders for not conceding another goal.
Coulibaly sent McBride away down the left and got into the area to receive the cross only for his effort to be blocked. Spurs failed to clear a Dons attack and were made to pay when the ball way whipped in low and Ogilvie was the unlucky one to get a foot to it and divert it into the net.
Coulibaly fired wide from distance as did a Dons striker. Burns was left stranded by a bad back pass that McBride squared to Akindayini at the far post who had a simple tap in. Lameiras was just wide with a strike from outside the area and Smith got on the end of another cross from McBride which was deflected for a corner approaching half-time.
McBride was replaced by Coulthirst for the second half as Spurs continued to dominate the play. Coulibaly saw his effort saved and Percil followed up with a drive that was blocked. Burns saved Lameiras's curling effort before Coulibaly won a corner. From the corner Coulthirst shot on the turn but saw it cleared off the line.
Coulibaly took a free kick from 20 yards out on the left. The ball came back off the wall for Souleymane to have a second try. This time it cleared the defenders and struck the inside of the left post, flew across to hit the right post and came back across the box where McQueen was the quickest to react and poke it home and increase the visitors' lead.
Burns saved from Coulibaly at the expense of a corner and also from Coulthirst although the ball dropped nicely for Akindayini to put in the net but thankfully for the keeper it was ruled offside. Coulibaly was still looking for goals and after driving the next one wide he was on target with the next which flew past Burns for his second, and Spurs fourth. That was enough for Inglethorpe as he replaced him with Angol to work on the left switching Coulthirst into the attack.
Lameiras had another drive saved before the home side broke upfield but they missed the chance to pull one back when the effort was fired wide with just McGee to beat. Burns saved from Coulthirst and when Lameiras played in Akindayini he denied him twice. Coulthirst set up Akindayini, who drove wide, before Coulthirst shot wide himself. Angol fired over the bar before McGee was called into action again. Spurs continued to put pressure on the home side with Burns having to make two more saves from Coulthirst as the game approached the final minutes. Ward replaced Smith to waste a few seconds as we entered the last minute.
With a bit of luck, Spurs could and maybe should have had another big score against the Dons who were beaten 11-3 at Spurs Lodge in November. Half the team played in that game as well. Players such as Munns, McEvoy, Barthram, Dombaxe and Modeste were saved for the Youth cup.
Two goals from Coulibaly show that he is settling in even if too often he still likes to shoot before looking around first. It was good to see McBride get 45 minutes after such a long period out injured. The home side tried hard to get into the game and on a few occasions too hard which had a couple of the Spurs players confronting them, but no tempers were lost and I am sure I have seen worst than this before.
On Wednesday evening Spurs play Cardiff City away in the FA Youth Cup 4th round before returning to league action on Saturday when Birmingham City are the visitors to the Lodge. Cardiff lost at home to Reading 5-1 and Birmingham lost to Leicester as well today (Saturday).
Ray
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