U18s: Bolton 0-0 Stoke

Youngsters held to stalemate by Potters

Wanderers’ Under 18 side picked up a hard-earned point with a 0-0 draw against Stoke City at Lostock on Saturday.

A game in which the hosts ultimately felt aggrieved not to have secured all three points at the final whistle, David Lee and Tony Kelly’s youngsters started brightly against the Potters with Jamie Thomas and Sam Bailey enjoying several opportunities to break the deadlock during the first half.

A similar tirade of pressure followed throughout the second period with Stoke goalkeeper Daniel Gyolla being tested on a number of occasions, but the young guns’ determination was ultimately in vain as the visitors held out for a point.

Speaking following the clash, coach Lee explained his delight at the performance of his side which included William Jaaskelainen, the son of former Wanderers keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen.

“We played very well and I believe we deserved to win given our performance,” he said. “We created a lot of excellent chances and totally dominated the game, but we were ultimately thwarted by their goalkeeper who produced some good saves.

“I thought although we produced a great team performance on the day, we also had two Under 16 players in Jaaskelainen and Honeyball who did very well too.

“We’ll take this result and make sure that we’re ready to go against Sunderland next weekend.”

Bolton:Jaaskelainen, Greenaugh, Honeyball, Ball, Kennedy, Bailey, Knight, Newby, Torres (Nelson, 75), Hinchcliffe, Taylor
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