St Albans City’s Midweek Youth team successfully negotiated a potentially tricky trip to North Greenford to notch up another 3 points and maintain their 100% league record in the Allied Counties League, East Division.

With four players missing through illness, injury and unavailability the starting line-up displayed three changes from the Burnham match and in a frantic first few minutes both teams hit the woodwork.  The Saints were first to break the deadlock after the dangerous Jamalle Parke-Jude won a corner on the right which was scrambled home by Josh Davies in the 10^th minute. Despite letting in a goal the home team were looking dangerous on the break and some sloppy play in City’s midfield was punished with a 20 yard shot leaving keeper Freddie O’Connell leaden-footed in goal. Following a brief exchange of handbags and mascara between both team’s Number 7’s, St Albans added the second goal through Elliot Bailey who arrived late into the box to head home a Gio Le-Baptiste pinpoint cross.  This was the final goal of the first half and despite Saints hitting the woodwork again it remained 2-1 at the break.

Although leading comfortably City’s youngsters seemed to be going through the motions in the first half and at the restart, the players showed what a good side they are by functioning as a unit – Laurence Wroe leading the defence by example, claiming headers and calmly setting up the midfield who created chance after chance for the strikeforce to finish. In this vein Marino Savva added the third via a deflection after Parke-Jude had shown the fullback another clean pair of heals and in the 56^th minute fullback Joe Zazzera settled the result by intercepting on the halfway line and advancing unchallenged to strike a low shot from 30 yards past an unsighted keeper. This was now  a far better City performance, and the icing on the cake was added by James Shaw with a 35 yard freekick flighted over the keeper who had strayed from his line, and substitute Matt Taylor the final deflected strike after a mazy run across the pitch.

Overall a good performance and a satisfactory 6-1 win. If Saints’ players can put in the same effort and endeavour shown in the first half as the second then St Albans City are on the verge of having a very good team which may provide players for the backbone of the Clarence Park’s future.

City: Freddie O’Connell; Joe Zazzera, Laurence Wroe, Josh Davies, Laurie Blow (Myles Scott 57); Harry Carr (Matt Taylor 67), James Shaw, Elliot Bailey; Jamalle Parke-Jude, Marino Hadji-Savva (Cieran Yapp 57), Gio Lee-Baptiste.

Goals: Davies (12 mins), Bailey (29), Savva (52), Zazzera (56), Shaw (80), Taylor (85).

NGU: 24 mins

Booked: Parke-Jude (25), Taylor (71).

NGU: Coone(25), Channer (67), Dyakiv (87).

Big game on Weds v Aylesbury in Cup – they were Cup runners-up last season!