Graeme Murty has given an honest and constructive verdict following our Under-21s’ 4-1 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers at Eppleton.
The final Group H fixture of this season’s Premier League Cup gave the young Lads a tough first half in DH5, but Murty explained how in the long run the experience against a physically adept Wolves side can benefit the players.
“It was a tough day for our young men,” the Lead U21 Coach admitted.
“We intentionally went with quite a young side to experiment with exposing some of our lads to a good challenge. They found it tough, which firstly is very good for their development as players and characters, but also shows what a Premier League 20-year-old looks like technically, physically and dynamically.
“That’s something which is a really good marker for them in an aspirational sense, for them to gauge where they are and see what they need to do to get there.”
Murty elaborated on the game – separating the performances either side of a half-time interval at which the Lads trailed by four, before Michael Spellman’s consolation repaired some damage.
“Let’s not beat around the bush, it was hard to watch and to take, and it was a challenge for the staff and I to emotionally maintain ourselves. We wanted to deliver some intensity to the players and some home truths, and ensured we did it in a constructive way.
“They displayed a better understanding and application to get much more success in the second half, albeit Wolves maybe dropping down a level. I’m glad we got our goal – we could’ve got more – but in the first half we didn’t really lay a glove on them, with or without the ball.
“The main message at half-time was for them to represent themselves accurately, and the lads agreed that we allowed Wolves to do as they pleased. Once we looked more like ourselves, we had much more success with our press and our regains.”
The young Lads must quickly dust themselves down ahead of Monday night’s long-awaited return to Premier League 2 football, Middlesbrough making the short trip up the A19 to Eppleton.
“Football is going to come down to whether you win your 1v1 battles. You find different ways to win it – physically, psychologically and tactically,” Murty said.
“There’s no recrimination. There are lessons to be learnt, but we go into Middlesbrough on Monday ensuring we own the Wolves result but getting back up from being knocked down.
“Wolves is done now, and we need to make sure the mistakes we made on the day don’t happen again. It’s all a learning process for these boys in the profession they’ve chosen.”