Anthony Wright pleased by professional display from Swansea City Under-21s

23rd October
Academy
Anthony Wright

Coach Anthony Wright applauded the professionalism and mindset of his players after watching Swansea City Under-21s advance to the semi-finals of the Nathaniel MG Cup with a 6-0 victory over 10-man Briton Ferry Llansawel at Old Road.

Kian Jenkins, Ruben Davies and Kristian Fletcher all netted two goals apiece as the Swans progressed to the last four in impressive fashion.

Jenkins had given them an early lead before the hosts had Morgan Hutin sent off for a bad tackle on Swansea skipper Mitchell Bates.

The visitors pressed home the numerical advantage, with Davies and Jenkins scoring in the final minutes of the opening half.

The Swans controlled the game from there, with Davies getting his second and Fletcher taking his tally to eight goals in eight games thanks to a quickfire double in the closing stages.

With the last-eight tie having been moved to Old Road – Swansea had originally been drawn at home – to test the young Swans in an unfamiliar environment, Wright was very pleased with how they handled the evening.

“I think reflecting on that you would have to say it was a professional performance,” he said.

“We started the game well, in fairness to Briton Ferry they looked to get on the front foot and cause us problems, but we dealt with that in difficult conditions.

“We moved the ball well at times, and we were really ruthless on the break, which was pleasing.

Kian Jenkins cele

“We scored a good goal early on, the sending off has changed the game massively.

“They had to go into more of a block, and from that point for us it was about us managing the game and managing the situations in front of us.

“We had to recognise when the space was there to speed the game up and create chances, and we did that to good effect.

“They handled the environment well, as has been the case throughout the competition.

“This was about having the right mindset, not making any excuses because this is different to what the players usually experience.

“That is the biggest thing, no-one looked for any excuses, the players were bright right from the warm-up and I just felt we were in a good place and that was so pleasing.”

Joe Thomas Ruben Davies

It was also a special evening for Wright as he brought the Swans to take on a grassroots club he has close links to.

And with the age-grade team now within sight of potential silverware, he hopes his players are excited by the opportunity ahead of them.

“It was a real good occasion, and to be able to bring a Swansea City team here was nice. There was a fantastic crowd and it’s been a good night,” he added.

“We set ourselves a target to go as far as we can, and we have a chance to get to the final. We will face top-flight opposition which will be a good test, but it is something to look forward to.

“Hopefully we can come through that and get ourselves to a final, which would be something very exciting for us as a group."