Professional Development League under-18
Under-18: Crystal Palace 0, Cardiff City 4
Cardiff City’s young guns went to the Palace and had a ball.
The young Bluebirds scored four goals during 20 first half minutes and effectively put the game out of the home teams reach.
Sion Spence (16 mins), Sam Bowen (24), Kieron Evans (25) and Rubin Colwill (36) led City to their four-goal win at the Crystal Palace Academy ground in Beckenham.
Cardiff are top of the PDL South table and proved too strong for a Palace team outplayed through midfield. The Bluebirds were able to outnumber the home team through the middle and maintain width with some outstanding wing play.
Central defender Trystan Jones and forward Sion Spence shone for City in a high quality team performance.
The visitors’ first goal came on 16 minutes following a sharp break down the right and the resulting cross was tucked away across Eagles goalkeeper Rohan Luthra by Spence.
Almost immediately Spence went close again when he went through one-on-one with the ‘keeper, but this time Palace survived.
It was only a temporary reprieve, though, and Bowen escaped his marker on the edge of the penalty area before smashing an unstoppable drive into the top corner.
The home side were stunned and went 3-0 down Evans met a cross from the right and slotted the ball under Luthra.
Cardiff’s fourth goal came after 36 minutes when Ntazana Mayembe, keeping his width on the left, delivered a whipped cross into the Palace box and Colwill turned home the ball into goal.
Half-time couldn’t come soon enough for head coach Paddy McCarthy and his Palace players, shocked by energy levels of their visitors and the tempo of a first half which had gone firmly against them.
McCarthy set up with an extra man in midfield to try and stem Cardiff’s dominance and the home team were far more aggressive during the second half.
City held out comfortably, though, with goalkeeper George Ratcliffe keeping a clean sheet.
Crystal Palace: Luthra, Jude Russell, Bello, Gurung, Trehy, Chamberlin-Gayle, Robertson, D Boateng, Ajayi (Kymani-Gordon 54), Donkin (Thiselton 60), Omilabu (Parris 75). Subs not used: Jacob Russell, Onoabhagbe.
Cardiff: George Ratcliffe, Ryan Kavanagh, Ryan Reynolds, Jan Davies (William Warnock 54), Taylor Jones, Harry Pinchard (Keenan Patten 60), Ntazana Mayembe, Rubin Colwill (Sam Parsons 60), Kieron Evans, Sion Spence, Sam Bowen. Subs not used: Rudy Andrew-Knott, Jordan Duffey (gk).
SOUTH
Remaining Cardiff City PDL Under-18 youth fixtures
- Saturday 23 v Coventry City (home at Cardiff International Sports Campus, Leckwith, 11.30am)
- March
- Saturday 2 v Ipswich Town (away, 11am)
- Saturday 9 v Nottingham Forest TO BE REARRANGED (home at Cardiff International Sports Campus, Leckwith, Noon)
- Sunday 10 v Swansea City (Welsh Youth Cup, home)
- Saturday 16 v Leeds United (away, 11am)
- Saturday 23 v Bolton Wanderers (away, 11am)
- Saturday 30 v Sheffield Wednesday (home at Cardiff International Sports Campus, Leckwith, 11am)
- April
- Saturday 6 v Crewe Alexandra (away, 11am)
- Saturday 13 v Burnley (home at Cardiff International Sports Campus, Leckwith, 11am)