U18 Report: Saints 0-2 Brighton
Southampton Under-18s were beaten 2-0 by Brighton in the Under-18 Premier League on Saturday.
Good chances for Saints saw Alejandro Gomes Rodriguez and Thierry Rohart-Brown both hit the crossbar, but Brighton claimed the win courtesy of goals from Harry Howell and Sahil Bashir.
The first shot on target of the contest came from the visitors when Ronnie Gorman tested Adli Mohamed in the Saints goal with a tame strike from long range.
A second chance for the Seagulls then saw Bashir allowed a free header at the back post, but he couldn’t direct his effort on target.
After their strong start, Brighton did eventually take the lead when Howell intercepted a pass from Mohamed and finished calmly into an empty net.
Saints went close to an equaliser when Brandon Charles received play centrally and drove towards the penalty area, before arrowing a left footed shot narrowly wide of the post.
Gomes Rodriguez was next to go within a whisker of scoring when he charged down a bouncing ball and got the touch before Brighton’s goalkeeper Alfie Mansell, but the Saints man could only hit the bar on the stretch.
During a good spell for the hosts, both Charles and Gomes Rodriguez went close again; the former hit the post with a header from a corner as the latter saw a shot fly narrowly wide.
Good Saints pressure continued into the second half as well, but it was Brighton who found the net again shortly after the restart when Bashir cut in from the left and found the top corner via a deflection.
Saints kept going and again went close to finding the net when Rohart-Brown headed Princewill Ehibhatiomhan’s cross against the bar and put the rebound over.
Further openings came and went for Saints as they looked for a way back into the game late on, but to no avail as Brighton held onto their win.
Saints are in action again on Tuesday 7th May when they host Chelsea at Staplewood in their penultimate game of the season, with kick-off set for 11am.
Saints: Mohamed, Trialist B, Boot (c) (Dobson-Ventura 45), Moore, Sheaf, Williams (Sesay 61), Trialist A (Oyekunle 61), Rohart-Brown, Gomes Rodriguez, Charles (Daley 45), Ehibhatiomhan.
Subs not used: Upstell.
Yellow Cards: Daley, Trialist B.
Brighton: Masell, Tasker, Mills, Simmonds, Penman (c), Gulzar, Moulton (Silsby 60), Howell (Nti 45), Belmont (Vickers 82), Gorman (West 60), Bashir (Oriola 67).
Subs not used: N/A.
Goals: Howell 10, Bashir 57.
Yellow Cards: Tasker, Mills, Gulzar, Oriola.
