Manchester City Youth 4 DONCASTER ROVERS Youth 0
Thursday, 19th December 2013 at Ewan Fields, Hyde
FA Youth Cup 3rd Round
Referee – Mr M Jones
Attendance – 241
A freezing cold winter evening greeted the Rovers U18s at the home of Hyde FC where they faced a Manchester City U18 side, who were top of the U18 Premier League, having won their last seven games and scored plenty of goals getting there.
Rovers got the game rolling but the first shot at goal came from City striker Ambrose in the first minute when he got to a loose ball and fired over the bar from just inside the area. Minutes later Bryan blasted goalwards but Mitchell Lund blocked it and the ball was cleared. The City kept up the pressure and in the 7th minute forced their first corner, which was played to Smith-Brown , who shot over from 25yards.
Rovers defended doggedly as the City swept forward time after time. But their defence was breached on the half hour when a free kick from Byrne on the City right brought two attempts at goal that were well blocked before AMBROSE latched on to the ball and stuck it into the net from close range.
City then stepped up a gear and poured forward to add to their score in the 37th minute after a Rovers attack broke down. The ball was played out of the City defence by Bryan to BARKER on the left. He had a clear run on goal from the halfway line and from inside the penalty area he fired across Burgoyne into the far corner. Barker then fired wide from 25yards and a low cross from Intima on the City right was somehow scooped over the bar from close range by Ambrose. Intima then got a header in from close range to a cross from the left but it was deflected wide.
Rovers hadn’t given up and in the second minute of added time they won a corner from which Askins bundled the ball into the net but the referee blew for a push on the keeper by Terrell.
The home team started the second half in the same mode as the first. Tasande tried a shot from 30yards on the left that went across the goal and out and minutes later Intima cut in from the right but Burgoyne came out and blocked the shot with his legs. In the 57th minute a cross from the City left was volleyed goalwards by Intima but Askins cleared off the line with an overhead kick.
Past the hour and a corner to the Rovers was cleared and in the 65th minute they won a free kick just outside the penalty area on the right. This was cleared by the City defence out to the speedy INTIMA on the City right. A clear run on goal saw him shoot past the keeper, who got a hand to the ball but couldn’t keep it out. Halfway into the half and the substitutions came thick and fast for both sides. The Rovers had kept possession better so far this half and had enjoyed their best spell in the game. However, in the 78th minute the ball was cleared out of the Rovers defence straight to BRYAN in a central position about 30yards out and drilled into the top corner giving Burgoyne no chance.
Two minutes later and the Rovers had a great chance of getting on the scoresheet when a long ball from Askins was knocked on by Burnyeat to Paul McKay but his low shot from 15yards was beaten out by Gunn and cleared. Intima, for City, then hit a post, with the ball bouncing back into play and in the 89th minute, following a free kick which was palmed away by Gunn, Mandeville, for the Rovers, got in a strike but Gunn managed to block it.
Teams – Manchester City – Angus Gunn; Ashley Smith-Brown (c), Mathias Bossaerts, Tosin Adarabioyo, Jose Tasande, James Horsfield, Jorge Intima, Jack Byrne, Thierry Ambrose, Kean Bryan, Brandon Barker
Subs used – Bersant Celina for Barker 67 mins; Denzeil Boadu for Horsfield 72 mins; Pablo Beccera for Bryan 72 mins
Subs not used – Nathaniel Oseni, Billy O’Brien
ROVERS – Harry Burgoyne; Mitchell Lund, Jacob Dawson, Jack Steadman, Ben Askins, Scott Brown (c), Lewis Ferguson, Spencer Lund, Ryan Burnyeat, Callum Terrell, Billy Whitehouse Subs used – Paul McKay for Steadman 67 mins; Liam Mandeville for Terrell 74 mins; Jack McKay for Burnyeat 84 mins;
Subs not used – Aron Gordon, Jack McLaren gk