Mixed emotions for young Swans against Chelsea
5th August
There were mixed emotions for two of the Swans' Academy sides last weekend as they faced Chelsea.
Both the Under-16s and Under-18s took on the Blues at their Cobham training base in what were two keenly contested fixtures.
The Under-16s ran out 1-0 winners, while the Under-18s lost 2-0 against the reigning FA Youth Cup champions.
Despite the mixed results, coach Cameron Toshack believes the trip was a fantastic experience for the next generation of Swans stars.
"It was great for our young men to go and experience that kind of environment," he said.
"In both games I think Chelsea dominated the possession stats but we want to try and test our youngsters against tough opposition.
"Part of the drive of this football club is to eventually have Category One status and we need to start benchmarking ourselves against these kinds of teams to start looking at how far away we are and what we need to do to push on and improve.
"You could also argue that technically and tactically their players are some of the best in Europe for their age group. But both our teams were well disciplined in our approach and we defended very well.
"All those involved were competitive and well organised with standout performances from our second year scholars Adnan Maric, Owain Jones, Steve Fallon and first year defender Aaron Lewis, who came away with a lot of credit against a difficult opponent."
The Under 18s now face Flint Town tomorrow (Wednesday) before a game against Gloucester City Under-18s on Saturday.
