Report: Bristol City U18s 2-1 Crystal Palace U18s

It was Palace who had the first real chance of the game in the opening minutes, hitting the post from a free kick.

After a stop-start half hour, it was City who broke the deadlock through Marlee Francois. The forward was in the right place at the right time as Sam Bell’s shot was deflected into his path and he made no mistake in making it 1-0.

The Robins doubled their lead just before half time when Ayman Benarous beat his man on the edge of the area and placed the ball past the Palace keeper.

The second half was an even affair with City searching for a third goal to seal the win. However, it was Palace who got the goal, halving City’s two goal advantage and getting themselves back into the game.

The game then turned in Palace’s favour as City went down to 10 men in the 75^th minute. Palace piled on the pressure in the closing minutes, forcing City to stay strong defensively. Despite being put under pressure by the visitors in the final minutes, the home side were able to see out the win in a resilient display at SGS.

Full-time: Bristol City Under-18s 2 – 1 Crystal Palace Under-18s.

Starting XI: William Bose, James Taylor, Khari Allen, Josh Owers (C), Nathaniel Williams, Callum Pearson, Marlee Francois, Max Williams, Sam Bell, Ayman Benarous, Will Gould. Subs not used: Prince Henry, Luca Smith, Jago Lott, Mark Thuo, Joe Porton.