Byron Anthony was pleased with Bristol Rovers' performance despite losing 3-1 to Bristol City in the Gloucestershire FA Senior Challenge Cup.
A youthful Gas outfit went behind early on after a fine strike into the bottom corner from Omar Taylor-Clarke before Brandon Bak doubled the Robins’ lead soon after half-time.
Kian Hill got Rovers back into the contest with a brilliant finish from range into the top-right corner, but the hosts scored moments after the restart through Kai Churchley's clever chip.
Academy manager Anthony reviewed the performance and said his side will take positives.
I think the players gave everything they could...
"I think overall, the players have done themselves justice," he said. "It was a difficult challenge to play against an experienced U21s team, but I think the players gave everything they could physically and had a right go.
"There were some defining moments in the game. We got back into it with a fantastic strike from 16-year-old Kian Hill and then conceded straight after, which is a little bit disappointing.
"They’ll learn a lot. We had five 16-year-olds on the pitch and an under-16 that came on towards the end. So, I think overall, when you take out the result, I’m pleased with some of the momentum that the players are taking forward. It was an opportunity for them to expose themselves to physicality against a real physical and direct Bristol City team."
I asked them to give everything they had...
"We knew we had a younger group," said the manager. "The only players with a bit of experience were Micah Anthony, Matt Hall and Jerry Lawrence, who haven’t got a massive amount of first-team experience.
"We had some really young players. For us, there’s a momentum element in terms of player development and that definitely put the players in a battle today. At the start, I asked them to give everything they had, empty the tank and work as hard as they possibly could."
"They played some good football at times, but I think we just got beat in some moments where we were a little bit naive. They will take lots of learning from that and will hopefully take that forward in parts of their development."
I think there are some players in there with some high...
"It’s a cup competition and a fiercely contested game," he said. "I thought it was really close and was closer than the scoreline showed. I think there are some players in there with some high potential, and we’re looking forward to working with them in the future.
"Kofi Shaw wasn’t involved today but it shows we have quality coming through the academy."
