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Saints Win Premier League U21 Cup Final
Monday, 20th Apr 2015 21:45

It took extra time to do it but Saints eventually overcame a determined Blackburn Rovers side to lift the trophy.

Saints dominated the game from the start, but for long periods it mirrored the Saints first team with plenty of good approach play, some wonderful slick passing but no end product.

In the early part of the second half it looked like Saints might put their foot on the the gas when Ryan Seager scored a real poachers goal picking up the deflection after a Harrison Reed shot had been half blocked by a Rovers defender and slotting it past the keeper cool.

But if Saints thought they might start to win comfortably from then on they were wrong, a cross cruelly hit Matt Targett in the penalty area and drew Blackburn level, but it got even worse when Harrison Reed was dismissed for a second yellow card.

But if anything it spurred Saints on and in extra time there looked only one winner and that came courtesy of a superb 25 yard drive from Sam Gallagher, a goal that would grace any cup final.

The real good news though was how good some of our players looked and how many now looked ready to step up a level, of course this was only against another youth team which is a lot easier than the Premier League, but our entire team looked the part.

Special mention for Paulo Gazzaniga his handling and decision making was superb and he commanded his area just when Saints needed him to, he had a confidence about him that was severely knocked out of him when he was thrown to the wolves a couple of yeas ago.

Ronald Koeman was amongst the 12,000 crowd in the stadium to watch Jason McCarthy pick up the trophy and he must have been pleased to see the displays from not only several of the team who have already played for the first team under him, but some of those yet to make their débuts.

Photo: Action Images



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IanRC added 23:00 - Apr 20
Well done lads, perhaps Gazzinga should be given a chance in the first team. Good to see BBC bias is intact posted this on the BBC feedback section.

Your football coverage is incredibly biased on BBC News. We were treated on the 22.45 sports bulletin to coverage of the first leg of the U18 Chelsea Man City game. No mention was made of the fact that Southampton won the U21 competition. Clearly demonstrates your editorial bias for so called 'big' teams. A disgrace.
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darthvader added 08:03 - Apr 21
Agree about gazza. I thought he was dominant in the area not afraid to come out for crosses . Also what an absolute beautiful goal to win a final any final and with his weaker foot? Surely he now deserves a look in in the first team considering our poor goal scoring of late ?
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SaintNick added 09:00 - Apr 21
A few players must have given Koeman food for thought, however it is still a big difference between this level and the first team, judging by some of the comments i have seen across the internet, there seem to be those that will not give Gazzaniga a chance
0

SanMarco added 10:03 - Apr 21
I was impressed with Gazzaniga - he has soon got to move up or move on so why not test his mettle on Saturday? No more likely to make a mistake than Kelvin in my view.
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halftimeorange added 12:40 - Apr 21
Certainly some good performances but the one which struck me was that of Bevis Mugabi at RB. Never put a foot wrong and his marauding runs forward caused Blackburn no end of problems. We deo have a ready-made replacement for Clyne.
Unfortunately, had two guys behind me who jeered and criticised every move Gazzaniga made, even when he did things well "that was lucky". They were from Titchfiels. That village was idiot-free last night!
0

bstokesaint added 13:25 - Apr 21
A great result and adds further value to our stock of promising young English footballers. I love the way we do things properly.
1

REEDYREEDOREEDZ added 17:50 - Apr 21
We've got a lot of promising youngsters. The future is bright!

My player assessments:
Gazza: That's the best game I've seen from him. Much improved from a year ago but kicking is still dreadful. Still only 23, has potential.
Mugabi: Big, quick and powerful, struggles to find a pass and some poor defensive decision making means he's unlikely to feature for the first team without big improvement.
Wood: Great performance from the 18 year old, he was our best defender, possibly has the potential to make the 1st team.
McCarthy: A few dodgy moments, maybe I was expecting more from him. Solid enough for the majority but not ready for the first team.
Targett: Got forward really well and showed his quality delivery on several occasions. A great understudy for Bertrand.
Reed: Learnt an important lesson about not diving in. The first yellow could've been a red and he left the ref with no option after the 2nd bad challenge. Other than that his touch, passing and interceptions were great and he looks like a decent Premiership midfielder. I expect him to play 20 first team games next season if we get into the Europa.
Dominic Gape: was incredibly assured in the middle of park, very good on the ball, won the ball back on several occasions and has a dangerous set piece delivery. I really liked the look of this player, has a lot of potential.
Jake Hesketh: He stood out for his touch, dribbling and awareness, and for technical ability he was the most gifted player on the pitch. He could soon become an important player for us, the first team need a creative player who can make things happen. He also put in a good shift in DCM after Reed saw red.
Sam McQueen: He's a good player but I'm not sure he has what it takes to make it as a Premiership player. I think his max potential is to be a decent Championship player.
Sam Gallagher: was having a quiet game out wide but came into his own when shifted into the middle. Was quite impressive as a striker. Great strike for his goal after some nice build up play. Be nice to see him get some minutes up front for the first team in the coming weeks.
Ryan Seager: Lacks pace but can finish. Without pace and strength he may struggle in the Premiership but would score goals at a lower level.
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