Simon Clark had a clear and simple message for his young Dons, before they step out under the lights against last season’s FA Youth Cup quarter-finalists Cambridge United tonight.
“My final words to them were just bring what you’ve got and continue to do what you’ve done all season,” said our Under-18s Head Coach of the Youth Alliance South East leaders, as they embark on their first round tie at the Cherry Red Records Stadium (7pm).
Simon, pictured with midfielder Kai Jennings, was speaking after Monday evening’s final training session at Southfields Academy: “Of course we want to win, but from my perspective it’s about performance and individual actions.
"We’ll go with a plan; a methodology and they’ll understand that – with and without the ball – but really, it’s just down to the lads to go out there and do what they’ve done so far this year.
“We’re top of the league for a reason and we’re not going to do anything different. It’s about continuing that - although the FA Youth Cup does give us very special nights as the team will be playing under the lights at our stadium.”
BUY TICKETS FOR TONIGHT'S GAME VIA OUR ONLINE SHOP.
The picture above shows striker Tom Wilson battling for the ball against Leeds United in the FA Youth Cup last season.
Below is a Q&A with Simon ahead of tonight's big game.
How did the final preparations go?
We train at Southfields late on Monday afternoons, after the boys have done their education there. The session went very well. We had a game day session, with a day to go, though with a few minor tweaks according to the opposition we're facing. The lads were bright and bubbly.
We had a good four games in the competition last season at our ground and we’re looking for a similar start on Tuesday.
How vital is it for the boys to gain experience of playing under lights and in front of a big crowd?
Very much so. I’ve done it before, as a player and as a coach. It’s great for the lads to play at our home. We normally play in front of a couple of hundred, but it’s lovely to play in front of hopefully a lot more than that. That’s just the decoration though.
The lads are really focused on what they’ve got to do, and it helps that some of the group were a part of that last season. They’ll understand what’s needed to win these games.
We want to develop pro footballers and it’s another part of their journey that they have to perform under those conditions. Whatever they go on to do in the game, they’re going to play under lights and in front of a crowd. Our training is done to prepare them for that. It’s accumulating more knowledge.
Every young player wants to play in the FA Youth Cup before they aim to turn professional, and this game will give them that opportunity.
The picture above shows defender Leo Young - the inaugural winner of the Nigel Higgs Development Award - for excellence both on and off the pitch.
On Friday you won 4-3 at Leyton Orient in the league. What was your verdict on that victory and the performance?
It was a good game, we had good rhythm and we’re in a really good place at the moment. You try and come out of it without injuries, but we couldn’t control that. It was about controlling what we can do, creating chances, and trying to negate their chances.
It’s always disappointing to concede goals, but we’ve looked at the reasons for that. We’re in a rich scoring vein now and that’s great for us because we play in a certain way and a certain style. We keep hitting the back of the net, which always gives you a chance when it comes to cup competitions.
Cambridge have beaten us in the league this season and last season they knocked out Chelsea, before going out at Arsenal. Therefore, are you expecting a tough tie?
They’ll be expecting to do the same again this season. They will keep talking about last year’s run, including what it means, what it feels like and what it takes to do it. This year is different though - there is no relevance. We also had a good run.
We’ve played away to them already this season and through individual errors we lost that match – even though it wasn’t a 3-1 game.
We know what’s in front of us and we know what we have to do to beat them. That’s all we’ll concentrate on. We’ve got a good picture of their strengths and weaknesses, and we’ll go full throttle to get the result.
Is the squad in good shape? What’s your team news?
We’ve got a long-term injury – Reuben Amissah is not available for the game. Apart from that, we're all fit, healthy, and raring to go.
Supporters may remember Leo Young, Harry Sidwell and Tom Wilson from last season and more recently the return of Kai Jennings from injury, but what can you tell us about the influx from the Under-16s this season?
We’ve got Riley Horan – a right-sided defender - and Bailey Cotton is an accomplished defender. We’ve added two forwards that are creating and scoring goals in Junior Nkeng and Ed Leach. It’ll be exciting to see them in front of a crowd at Plough Lane, as they recently played in the behind closed doors game against Brentford B.
Finally, what’s the mood like in the camp after you’ve wrapped up preparations ahead of the big game?
We’ve done loads of preparation for this one. The mood is really buoyant, especially having drawn 2-2 at Watford in the Premier League Professional Development League Cup and the win at Leyton Orient. We fully expect to hit the back of the net, having done so four times in our last match.