Brent’s Under-11 Boys took on Barking and Dagenham in the group stages of the Lester Finch Trophy. Brent started slowly but showed their cutting edge when a threaded through ball from the lively Jack was met by Troy who rounded the keeper and slotted home for 1-0.
Brent looked to press their advantage but were caught on the counter-attack by a slick Barking goal.
Brent showed their character by bouncing back and Conor Moore latched onto a clearance to strike fiercely into the top right hand corner which ensured Brent led 2-1 at half-time.
Brent stepped up their game in the second half and had several chances to extend their lead, with Troy, Kalungi and Fabian all going close. It was Troy who extended Brent’s lead when he chipped the keeper from 25 yards.
Barking remained dangerous and pulled one back as they responded quickest to a save from a powerful free kick. This inspired a late rally from the home side but Brent held firm to claim the points.
After the match, the coach observed: “This was a real team performance where the players played with confidence and at times swagger. It’s a strong foundation to keep progressing on”.
Squad: Joe Barrett, Troy Kelly, Casper Lindner, Kalungi Lovell, Conor Moore, Armend Muslika, Tyreece Pollendine, Fabian Prela, Deon Selmani, Dhyan Sharma, Jack Somers, Bernardo Zanuncio and Zak Zebiri.