Just a short piece on tonight’s whatever it’s called Cup game against Arsenal’s under 21s. Despite the competition rules saying that at least four first team squad members should be involved, City fielded the following line up;-
Turner, Kingdon, Keita, Debono, Parfitt, Apter, Twose, Perrett, Spiers (thought he was on loan to Merthyr?), George, Ola
Subs Dennis, J Davies, Hobson, Pearce, Watts, H ilaire-Clark, Sykes
A very generous interpretation of what constitutes a first team squad member may include Troy Perrett to join Matt Turner, but I see no way you can stretch it to four, so it’s a wait to see what the rule makers decide.
With all four teams level on points with a goal difference of zero, City found themselves bottom of the group on the basis of goals scored, but, essentially, it was a case of seeing what happened in the game between Newport and Exeter and trying to better that outcome to top the group.
In the event, Exeter won 1-0 and, with that match having kicked off forty five minutes earlier, City and Arsenal knew that a win would see them through in the second qualifying place at least.
The chances of the qualifier being City looked remote on seventeen minutes when Arsenal left winger Charles Sagoe, probably the most talented individual player on the pitch, set up a chance for Marcell Washington which he fired past Turner from fifteen yards.
However, the City response was immediate, well, within two minutes actually, as Perrett moved on to an Ola header and took the ball past two opponents before sliding in a classy equaliser from six yards.
Arsenal probably just about shaded the rest of the first half, but there was only one team in it in the second period with City emerging worthy winners.
They were helped on their way by the sending off of the Arsenal keeper Alexei Rojas for bringing down sub Luke Pearce on the hour mark, but Will Spiers had already hit the crossbar by then to demonstrate how the game was shaping up.
City laid siege on the visitor’s goal after that and got a fortunate second as Spiers’ cross eluded the Arsenal defender on the near post to leave substitute goalkeeper Mitchell with no chance of preventing it going in to the far corner.
Although the players tired somewhat during the twenty minutes (plus nine minutes added time) that remained, they maintained their intensity levels and continued to tackle and close down tenaciously.
Victory was sealed in added time when Trey George scored from ten yards out after substitutes Davies and Sykes had combined.
In the end, 3-1 did not flatter this very young team which rose to the occasion superbly. I’m not going to single anyone out, their names are listed above and the starting eleven plus subs Pearce, Jake Davies, Sykes and Watts were all excellent.
My one fear is that if the club is fined for a breach of the rules, does this mean that their win will be declared invalid and they’ll be thrown out of the competition? For the sake of the heroic youngsters representing City tonight I hope that does not happen – their efforts deserve better than that, this was a great win, in fact, I’d rate it one of the highlights of the season so far.
Thank-you again, Paul, for your write-up on the Arsenal Under-21 game. It was a balanced piece of writing that reflected last night’s encounter.
I must be honest and state at the outset that had I thought about it too long I could have found one of numerous reasons to have watched the game on Sky Sports than in the flesh. The torrential rain that fell from the black sky for most of the game was not the least of them. How wrong would I have been.
This game, from start to finish, was a fine encounter with an excellent quality of football on display. In fact, from a City point of view, this was the most enjoyable game I’ve had the pleasure of watching since August. In awful conditions, where rain of biblical proportions fell, the City youngsters played with a style and endeavour that was a joy to watch. Not only did they thoroughly deserve their victory against PL opponents but also showed what a crop of youngsters City have.
It was so pleasing to see, unlike the senior team, wide players repeatedly taking on, beating full backs thus turning the defence before putting in telling crosses. This was a performance that so encouraged a footballing-Luddite like me. There was energy aplenty, good running off the ball, vision and slick passing. And all this during a night of terrible weather.
Perhaps someone can help me. Is my memory correct? Did I read it on Twitter / X recently that this international break City have 5 senior players and THIRTEEN Under-17 to Under-21 players away on duty?
To answer my own question I’ve just re-read Nigel Harris’ post on X:
“I bet many of us thought the worst with 19 players down, no first teamer or squad player but our Under 18’s and 21’s beat Arsenal U21’s in some style.”
Paul, Steve and others, An enjoyable watch but neither side had any real first teamers appearing with both having upwards of ten youngsters or more as well away on some form of international duty. A win is a win, and fully deserved, but Arsenal youngsters are in no great shape as from the comment that I read revealed their U18s, U19s and U21s had earned no wins in thirteen matches. Mr Arteta will be having words.
Oh boy-oh-boy…!!
Paul compadre,
When you say that was ‘one of the highlights of the season so far’ I can only say ‘hear, hear!’
Indeed… I’d go further and say it was probably one of the highlights of the last DECADE.
Fantastic stuff.
I am with you in your saying that Charles Sagoe Jr was the most talented player on the pitch (gee, he’s gonna be a big star is this kid)… but like you say the nearest competitors he had for that title were all wearing blue.
I was so impressed in the last quarter when our boys were nearly out on their feet, that they went for 50/50 balls and still won nearly all of them. They seemed to thrive in the conditions whereas the Arsenal boys seemed intimidated by them and to be longing for a dry Meadow Park at Boreham Wood on a nice balmy evening.
Made me think back to 1961/2 season when the Porth YMCA team of under 15s I used to play very poorly for, were playing an away game in a freezing wind and about 28 degrees Fahrenheit on top of the mountain in Foch Rhiw. ‘They’ wanted it more than us… and we were beaten easily. All we wanted was to get back in the bus to the Rhondda.
Steve (kudos to him for physically being there… quite a shlep from Sebastopol on such a windy, rainy night) makes a great point about how refreshing it was to see us trying to take the ball down to the byline and cross it…
Gee this boy Davies who came on really impressed me in that department.
And Brian makes the point that both teams broke the minimum of the ‘4 first-teamers’ rule… so the thought occurs that both teams might be thrown out… not just us.
If we are both excluded, then I suggest we both be punished with the traditional 0-3 defeat… so the ‘County’* be given our place… as I am sure that with their current manager they are destined for the National League.
Talking of a doomed club… because their game kicked off 45 minutes before ours, I watched nearly all of the first half of The Pilgrims game at the Memorial Ground.
What a contrast to our brilliant game… theirs was a true snorefest. How sad for my two fave vloggers that in the last minute of injury time, their keeper drops a harmless corner… and the Gas player knees the ball home from two yards for the only goal of the game.
One final point… the attendance at the Vertu Trophy final just 7 months ago was 71,722. Incidentally, having watched the whole game (but with my unreliable memory)… I have to say that I seem to recall that both clubs played their full first X1.
BBM has underplayed the importance of this competition. We must be amongst the 3 favourites to win it now… when was the last time we held a trophy aloft at Wembley?
(Clue to the answer: it was the very same day that Roger ‘007’ Moore and Barbara Cartland were born.)
* Even though I have been to the underwhelming pitch at Moreton -in-Marsh, positively NOTHING will bring me to calling them ‘The Exiles’.
TTFN,
Dai.
Sorry to labour the point. Here is the list of the CITY’S INTERNATIONAL EIGHTEEN …
https://www.cardiffcityfc.co.uk/news/international-bluebirds-november-call-ups-3
Will Spiers also excelled down his flank even when he switched to left back in the second half.
Just a thought. You could imagine City being thrown out of this thingy-cup for not playing their strongest team after playing so beautifully and despite being shorn of no less than 18 players.
No Steve, one COULDN’T ‘imagine’ it.
And for the reason Brian states… viz… if they were to disqualify us, they’d have to disqualify Arsenal too. And for all we know there may be other teams without 4 first team squad players.
And Steve boyo, I love you dearly… but please do not accidentally show the same disrespect for this trophy that BBM exhibits. Do not call it the ‘thingy cup’.
https://tinyurl.com/bdcupfz3
For one thing, the 4th biggest UK chain of car retailers (over 200 sites) deserve better, and second, ask Peterborough and Birmingham if they feel that way after April… Blues took over 40,000 fans to Wembley.
Sure, the Blues fans were gutted at the end (and the team were at the start methinks, losing the toss for shirt colour), but ask them about the passion of that semi against Wrexham that went to penalties…!!
I can still remember their jubilation at winning the shootout.
DW
Thanks for the comments all, I must say that twenty four hours further contemplation just conforms that this is a rare occasion where I must disagree with Brian. Arsenal’s struggles at age group level are news to me, but, even so, it doesn’t diminish the extent of my admiration for that City team because it wasn’t really an under 21 side, it was a mixture of under 21s and under 18s (Steve’s post showing the eighteen missing players really brings home the extent to which we should not have been winning that game!). Yes, the sending off helped, but there were a few signs that we were getting on top at the time.
As for possible fines and bans, don’t quote me on this, but I think the four first team squad members rule does not apply to the Premier League sides that take part.
Dai, although I purposely decided to not name individuals, instead choosing to emphasise that they all did superbly, I agree with you about Jake Davies, I thought he was excellent and he’s someone who has impressed me in previous games I’ve seen him play.
Great summing-up from you Paul.
I’ve been thinking…
Why did they impose this ‘minimum of 4 first team players’ rule?
Here are the possible reasons I can deduce… (in no order of importance)
1. To show respect for Vertu as a sponsor.
2. To remind fans this is a serious competition and thus they should attend and PAY.
3. To try to stop top Div 1 teams deliberately throwing the game, and ‘wanting out’ due to fixture overload.
Now, BBM’s attitude to the Vertu Trophy has been tepid at best up to now. Indeed, I was very disturbed by the nonchalant way he shrugged off our exit at the first stage from the far more prestigious FA Cup just a couple of weekends ago. He seemed happy that he could now concentrate on the League… and some of our more benighted fellow supporters held the same bizarre view. I don’t like to see it in a manager.
I want him lamenting the fact that we have missed a big chance to go on a journey that can turn into the magic of 2008.
Oh, and one other point. Paul, thinking it through, I reckon your point about the 4 first teamer rule not applying to the Premier under 21 sides, makes sense… for how could 4 members of the Arsenal first team squad have played in that game? The current wunderkinder lighting up the Emirates Stadium, are needed at HQ to take on Bayern Munich, and later on needed to play Inter at the San Siro. It is not reasonable to see them perform their magic on a cold windy night at Rodney Parade.
So I am with you Paul on this, and I am sure Brian also is… now that we have all thought it through. But there is good news: the fog in my thinking has cleared sufficiently for me to see a good solution for City.
And it is this: there’s not even a remote chance that we’d be thrown out on breaching the rules… and here is for why.
First, who would object? Newport won’t… they want good relations with their closest neighbour as we loan them players from time-to-time. But more importantly Arsenal won’t, because they don’t want to advertise the embarrassment of being beaten by a side even younger than theirs. QED, yes?
Paul… is there anything I have missed here?
DW.
The perceived standing of the thingy-cup (oops, sorry Dai, ‘The Vertu Cup,’) would be greater if it were not scheduled for an international break. Perhaps the organisers and footballing authorities finds it an irritant for a lower league team, such as Cardiff City this season, to have any international footballers on duty, causing them problems, when such games were scheduled let alone eighteen (plus a couple of others being injured). [Tongue in cheek comment.] Why were two of City’s three group games scheduled on these international weeks? Have not the organisers devalued it themselves? While I take your post with a small pinch of salt, why devalue it further by accommodating PL Under-21 teams in it? I think, we know the answer to that one. Next season I think the situation will probably worse with the 3-week international break in the Autumn. What do we do gents?
Gents – All I was trying to convey was that the Arsenal “youngsters ” are no great shapes this season as their position of 14th out of 29 in the PL2 show, and they are faring no better in the young UEFA league.
We certainly have more away on international duty than Arsenal who have 1 away at U21, level and 5 away at U19, but I have no idea how many at younger age groups.
As far as Tuesday’s encounter was concerned, we fielded 1 at age 23, Arsenal 0; both 2 at age 21; City 3 at age 20, Arsenal 1; both fielded 4 at age 19, and both 3 at age 18; City 3 at age 17, Arsenal 4; and none at age 16, Arsenal 3.
What all this research reveals goodness only knows but the Arsenal team on average was younger than our lot and with a man down for the last half-hour, both statistics probably played in our favour. But, but that in no way detracts from what was a fine performance from all who played in blue and particularly Jake Davies when he was introduced in the second half.
I’m now going for a lie down!!!!!
Total RESPECT goes from me to you Brian. You have done the hard yards there for us all.
And how I reckon we all agree with you re Jake Davies. Paul says his performance was no flash in the pan… apparently Jake had shone in games Paul had seen. On the strength of that, could Jake perhaps make the first team squad before the season is out?
DW
Respect to Brian for some great research which, I have to admit, goes a long way towards proving his point.As for the possibility of us being chucked out of the competition, I think the fact that no one else seems to have raised the possibility of it happening other than me tells a story! Finally, I see Charles Sagoe Junior has played in the EFL for Swansea during a loan spell there in 23/24.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Sagoe_Jr