Magpies out of the Youth Cup after Lincoln loss...
Notts County youth team were defeated 3-2 by Lincoln City youth team on Wednesday night. The Magpies got off to an impressive start with an early strike but two goals before the break and another shortly after dumped them out of the FA Youth Cup.
Striker Romello Nangle, who has been involved with the first team in recent weeks, put Notts ahead inside the opening 10 minutes. The finish was outstanding, a 25-yard hit that clipped the underside of the crossbar to leave the home stopper, Ollie Pannell, with no chance.
The Imps quickly drew level through Conner Robinson. The frontman was given room to open up his body on the edge of the box, which allowed him to stroke the ball into the bottom-left corner.
His strike partner, Jordan Thomas, was next to convert, when a diagonal delivery by Aaron Rice made its way over the County backline. Goalkeeper Harry Andrews raced out of goal to punch but Thomas collected to place home.
Andrews prevented it from becoming 3-1, when he produced an acrobatic save to tip Thomas’ long-range hit over. The resulting corner cannoned off the near post and Luke Weaver’s low drive was directed into the side netting by Ryan Leggett.
Malachi Lavelle-Moore had two strong efforts, as Notts searched for an equaliser. First, he fired into the stand behind the goal from distance, before having a free-kick smartly gathered by the goalkeeper.
After the break, Rice forced a low save out of Andrews with a powerful, low drive. Taylor capitalised on the rebound and applied the finish inside the six-yard box to make it 3-1.
Lavelle-Moore had an effort from a corner saved, before the Imps came close to adding a fourth on the counter attack. With the Magpies stretched, Thomas broke free but he cleared the bar with a stern shot.
The final 30 minutes of the match saw County come into the game and Mitchell Clarke latched onto an overhead pass by full-back Ryan Freshwater to strike over. Elliott Hodge later rifled inches wide of the target, after the hosts had struggled to clear.
A change in shape to three at the back led to Notts creating more openings. Lavelle-Moore watched an effort loop agonisingly over from Kameron Campbell’s driven, near-post corner and Brad McGowan volleyed inches wide from Kyle Dixon’s direct free-kick.
Lavelle-Moore, again, came close from a well-rehearsed free-kick but was unable to hit the target. For the Imps, substitute Alex Simmons hit the foot of the post.
With only three minutes to go, Nangle gave Notts hope of sending the game to extra time, when he chased down a ball over the top to bravely challenge the goalkeeper. The striker managed to make a headed connection and the ball trickled over the line.
Four minutes of added time gave the Magpies a push but Lincoln smartly ran down the clock. It was a disappointing exit for Notts but an encouraging second half performance in front of first team manager Keith Curle, who watched on from the stands.
Photo by Andy Stokes.