The Youth Academy are now down to the last few games of their first season, here are the two match reports from their 2-1 defeat to Chasetown and their impressive 8-1 win over Manchester Met University.
By Dave Currie, Youth Academy manager.
The academy team travelled down the M1 to play against a strong Chasetown team. After a victory against FC Halifax Town in their previous fixture the boys were confident they could gain a positive result. This confidence was evident as the boys took control of the game in the early stages. However as the first half progressed Chasetown looked the stronger side and broke the deadlock with a shot which dipped over keeper Tom Stewart’s head. Although Chasetown had more possession it was Guiseley who were creating the best chances with Luke Robinson and Ben Whitfield both missing from close range. With ten minutes of the first half remaining Guiseley had the ball in the net but the officials decided that an infringement had taken place and disallowed the goal. To add further insult Chasetown doubled their lead with an near identical finish just before half-time.
After a few choice words from the management team the lads came out more lively in the second half but it took until the 75th minute for the Young Lions to break the deadlock. Zack Dale managed to get to the byeline and whip in a cross for Luke Robinson to meet fiercely with his head. For the remainder of the game Chasetown used their experience to slow the game down and spoil any momentum that Guiseley had gained.
In the end a disappointing 2-1 defeat but the Young Lions had chance to put it right when they welcomed Manchester Met University to Nethermoor a few days later, knowing that 3 points were expected.
The away fixture had been a 2-2 draw and an improvement on this was essential to show the boys had made development this season.
The Young Lions came out roaring and were boosted by a decent turn-out from staunch Guiseley fans who took the time to show their support for the boys. Within ten minutes and numerous chances Guiseley were 2-0 up. Soon after MMU gave a reminder that concentration is essential and they broke to score a soft goal. This gave the MMU side a boost for a short period, however, Guiseley were in no mood for holding back and before the half-time break managed to score another three goals to lead 5-1.
In the second-half Guiseley remained totally dominant and continued to play some attractive, attacking football. In the end they ran out 8-1 victors – the highest winning margin in the Conference Youth Alliance this season. This represents a good confidence booster before they travel to Birmingham City next week. Goalscorers in the game were Luke Robinson (3), Zack Dale (2), Redmond Lee, Ben Whitfield and Dane Hodgson.
