Jarred Harvey | You can't fault the players, they gave it their all

Coach Jarred Harvey spoke of his pride in his players after watching Swansea City Under-18s suffer extra-time heartbreak in their Professional Development League Cup final against Millwall.

The Swans had taken the lead through a Thomas Woodward goal in the first half, but the Lions – playing the showpiece on home turf at The Den – would level through a long-range strike from Frankie Maciocia.

Neither side could find a winner in normal time, but late goals from Kavalli Heywood during the additional half-hour would settle the contest 3-1 in the Lions favour.

Regardless of the final outcome, the young Swans could be proud of their efforts against a Millwall side who have reached the semi-finals of the FA Youth Cup this season and, despite the disappointment, the squad will have taken a lot from experiencing such an occasion.

“I am so proud of the players and their performance,” said Harvey.

"It took us a while to settle, the same for both sides, it was a bit scrappy early on and then we kicked into gear.

"We scored the goal, and we could have gone two up as we had other chances, but we didn't take them.

"We still went in to half-time a goal up, which was a positive, but their early goal put us on the back foot in the second half.

"We lost three key players at key moments in the second half, and then going into extra-time was tough.

"We still created chances in the second half, and we got done on a few mistakes.

"You can't fault the players, they gave it their all. For a lot of the players it was their first-ever final, and we hope it’s the first of many.

“They are hurting, but as a club we are so proud of them and they have done brilliantly to get this far in the competition, and what a fantastic experience it has been for them.”