City stage outstanding comeback in Under-18 PL Cup win

It was a game that pretty much had everything as Brentford went 2-0 up through Jovan Kasujja and Jai Bansoodeb. 

But the tie was far from over as Dexter Oliver returned to his clinical goalscoring ways before City were awarded a penalty.

Josh Zetter-Plummer saw red after denying a Freddie Lawrie effort but Teddie Lamb couldn’t convert the resulting penalty.

But City would go on to stage an incredible comeback when captain Marlow Barrett headed home from Lawrie’s parried effort on the cusp of half-time.

And that was just half of the tale as Lamb fired us ahead for the first time in the game before Brentford’s Kasujja turned the ball into his own net with Timeo Whisker later adding a fifth for the perfect start to our Under-18 Premier League Cup Group D campaign. 

What happened 

Following a 100% record maintained ahead of the international break, Lauris Coggin’s side have enjoyed a flawless set of league performances thus far.

This time however, our Premier League Cup campaign began as we came up against an unfamiliar side in Brentford with hopes of starting the group stages in the best possible way.

Under the flight path of Heathrow Airport, City saw efforts from Whisker miss the target, but it would be Brentford who found the breakthrough on 12 minutes through an unstoppable finish from Kasujja.

Minutes later, the Bees exposed our back-line once more as Bansoodeb fired home an identical opportunity and it looked to be an uphill battle for the young boys in blue.

City refused to give up and just after the 30-minute mark, Oliver gave us a life line as he continued where he left off before the break to fire us back into the tie.

And the game just kept the drama coming as Zetter-Plummer was sent off after a deliberate hand ball in the box to deny Lawrie.

Lamb was denied after taking the resulting penalty and Brentford would no doubt feel a sigh of relief.

But it wouldn’t be for long, with Coggin’s Blues trying everything to find a way through and skipper Barrett proved to be our hero as he fired in on the crux of half-time.

City’s heads would no doubt be held high after that first 45 minutes, and Lamb would further that as he was picked out by Javahn Woode before firing us in front. 

We were seriously throwing everything at the 10-man hosts and the pressure would see our opponents buckle as Kasujja headed into his own net. 

The goal fest continued as Whisker fired home our fifth of the afternoon, he later thought he’d scored a sixth as did Tireni Aiyebusi seconds before the final whistle, but the flag was up for offside on both occasions.

That would be the last clear-cut action of the game in what was an action-packed 92 minutes in London. 

How we lined up

Brentford XI | Nicholls, Zetter-Plummer, Ogungbemi (C), Foster-Jones (Goppy 67’), Biggs, Cohalan, Mason (Balogun 46’), Noni, Kasujja (Theobald 79’), Bansoodeb, Madden (Roca 86’)

Subs | Lyon, Nutter, Giles

City XI | Vickery, Carrington, Thornton, Lawrie, Barrett (C) (Houlihan ‘66), Gueke (Smith 88’), Whisker, Nduka (Aiyegbusi), Lamb (Motsi 66’), Oliver (Gorman 66’), Woode

Subs | Mathiesen, Aina

AS A RESULT

City move up to second in Group D of the U18 Premier League Cup after securing our first three points of the campaign. We sit just behind Burnley who have already played two of their three fixtures.

Clashes with Burnley and Southampton await the Blues, with only the top-placed team from each group to qualify for the knockouts. 

Up next

City return to Under-18 Premier League North action on Saturday 24 October as we face Derby County, with kick-off set for 11:00 (UK).