Young Dons going in the right direction says coach
declared his satisfaction with the progress made by Wimbledon’s Under-21s after last night’s gallant defeat against QPR.Shaun North
, the Under-21 Development Coach said the manner of the goals conceded in a 4-3 loss disappointed him, but he has been pleased with this season so far.Dons PlayerDuring an interview with Rob Cornell for
“The players worked their socks off and some of the things that we had been working on in training they did, which is all you can ask of them,” said Shaun (pictured above left with Neil Cox). “The Under-21 set-up here is in its infancy because this is the first year that we have done it. We have been working together now for two or three months and we are coming along nicely.
“We were a little bit disappointed with their goals because we did work in training on defending in the box and marking-up, rather than marking space. Although the overhead kick that they scored was a fantastic goal, I am not sure if it should have been given because his foot was close to the head of our lad who was marking him.
“I don’t think that 4-2 would have been a fair reflection. I think we did enough to at least be within a goal of them, if not, be on equal terms. At the end we were hoping to get another one and take it into extra-time. It is a learning process for the squad. In two weeks’ time we will be playing against Barking in the London Senior Cup and that will be a completely different match. The players are learning with every match.”
Oluseyi Daley, who scored Wimbledon’s first goal last night with a well-taken volley, added: “I think as a team we matched them for spells. They are a Championship club and have more resources than us, but I did not think there was much of a difference between the two sides.”
If you missed last night's report on the Premier League Cup tie at Woking, please click on QPR report .