As the Everton youth side took on their Wolves counterparts in the FA Youth Cup 4th Round at a cold Goodison Park on Tuesday night, there was a sense of anticipation that the night could be another special one. The 7-0 hammering of Nottingham Forest in the last round, in which Harrison Armstrong scored a hat trick, whetted the appetite for this game.
This time, we saw Armstrong playing deeper in midfield allowing Northern Irish hotshot Braiden Graham to come into the line up in an attacking role. Midfielder Luis Gardner was deployed in an unfamiliar right back role and Douglass Lukjanciks was in goal, otherwise it was the same team. See the line up below:
Another change was in the dugout where former Under 21s assistant manager and ex-Blues Under 21 player Keith Southern has taken charge following the promotion of Leighton Baines.
It was clear from the start that this was not going to be the same walkover as the Forest game. Wolves were a different proposition and a nervy start by Lukjanciks plus early bookings inside the first 10 minutes for Harvey Foster and George Morgan were a worry.
The Blues, playing in a 4-4-2 formation, began to get a foothold in the game although the manner in which they took the lead in the 25th minute was bizarre to say the least.
Armstrong clearly fouled a Wolves midfielder 30 yards from goal and both sets of players visibly stopped for a whistle which never came. Fortunately, Armstrong had the presence of mind to get back on the ball and play Morgan in. He powered home a right footed shot from 15 yards with the players in the gold shirts understandably furious, 1-0.
After a somewhat stuttering start, the Blues suddenly found an extra gear and both Armstrong and Joel Catesby fired strong shots in at goal.
Seven minutes later, Justin Clarke made a lung-busting run from just outside his penalty area to 30 yards out where it was his turn to feed Morgan. The young Welshman showed great strength before making no mistake, 2-0.
After a series of substitutions, the Toffees lost a bit of rhythm although still looked the better side, the highlight being a run by Graham from inside his own area to the edge of the Wolves area before drawing a good save from the Wolves ‘keeper.
As Wolves seriously threatened, Lukjanciks, who had an uncharacteristically nervous game, made a marvellous catch at full stretch to relieve the pressure in the 88th minute.
That was almost immediately followed by a piece of play where substitute Ceiran Loney won the ball off a defender, played it to Armstrong who fed him to the left of the area. The young Scotsman’s left foot shot found a spot just inside the post and the whole team celebrated what looked to be the crowning goal, 3-0.
The six minutes of added time saw Aled Thomas clear off the Blues’ goal-line, a Wolves header hit the post and a 15 yard unstoppable crashing drive from Dayman that pulled the score back to 3-1.
This was no cruise like the Forest game in December but the young Blues showed a different side to them when not everything went their way. It was a disciplined performance in spite of the yellow cards received. It was refreshing that the team tried to play out from the back at every safe opportunity.
Stand-out players for me were George Morgan who never stopped working and scored 2 goals and Harvey Foster for controlling the midfield and his measured passing even though he played 90 minutes carrying a yellow card. Man of the match though was probably Joshua van Schoor at left back whose energy, defending and distribution were absolutely spot-on. He was supported ably by centre backs Aled Thomas and Luca Davis. First-teamer Armstrong also put in a fine team performance in midfield showing his undoubted class at times and, once again, providing two assists.
A fine win and yet another Goodison cup tie to look forward to when the young Toffees play Plymouth Argyle in the 5th round. There’s a good feeling around the Academy (and Goodison) at the moment!
