PROFESSIONAL Development Phase Lead Coach Sam Rose was disappointed with the performance of the Burton Albion under 18s in their 3-1 defeat to Grimsby Town, despite a spirited performance in the second-half.
The Brewers were beaten through two first-half strikes and one early in the second period, as the Mariners stormed into a deserved three-goal-lead. Reece Hutchinson pulled one back with a low strike from distance.
Burton threw everything at Grimsby late-on and created a host of good opportunities, but Rose says that the performance over the course of 90 minutes was not good enough.
He said: “It was a disappointing performance, we were slow getting going and were three goals down just after the start of the second-half. It could have been more, Grimsby hit the post and the bar.
“I think that the second-half reaction was better, we changed the shape and brought some substitutes on, which made a bit of a difference. The goal gave us a lift and we were on top from there, but it was too little, too late.
“The last 20 minutes was the closer to the type of team and individual performance that we expect. Over the 90 minutes, we did not deserve to win the game, Grimsby did.”
Second-half substitute James Melhado felt that the young Brewers created late chances to get possibly get something from the game, but that conceding three goals early in the game ultimately decided the result.
He said: “I feel that we dominated the last 30 minutes of the game. We created a lot of chances in that last 30 minutes and should have score more goals.”