It was a magnificent display by an Ipswich under-18 side to overcome Nottingham Forest last night at Portman Road. The young Blues progressed to the fifth round of the FA Youth Cup with a penalty shoot-out victory 4-2 against a resilient Tricky Trees team.
Rio Morgan had shot Town an early lead after Nico Valentine had seen an effort blocked on the line, but the young Blues found themselves level with 15 minutes to go when Esapa Osong’s thunderbolt meant this game would not be decided in normal time. Extra time proved indecisive too – although there were half-chances for both sides, and so it went to penalties but this adventurous Blues outfit were up to the task!
Finley Corrigan took the first for Town to put the Blues in front, and then our chances improved greatly, as the Osong penalty was saved by Town’s Woody Williamson, and in next to no time, Town were leading 2-0 when Osman Foyo scored for the Ipswich Town, but the drama was not quite over yet! Josh Powell pulled one back for the visitors before Ashton Boswell hit home decisively for the home side to make the score 3-1!
Then, Forest captain Kyle McAdam made it 3-2 with a finely taken penalty. We were still in a good place until Bott stops Tom Taylor’s kick, and the tension mounted again! Archie Whitehall fired over for Nottingham Forest, and it was left to Rio Morgan to win it for Town. He did, and we won, and now face a home tie with Liverpool in round five of this entertaining competition. The young Blues battled tirelessly and ultimately deserved to win. It was a hard-fought battle but determination won through in the end.
This young side is full of talent, but as Barry Cotter proved, it might not materialise into regular first-team football. Cotter returned to Ireland with Shamrock Rovers after just one appearance in a Blue shirt under the stewardship of Mick McCarthy. Now, it seems, League One rivals Barnsley are prepared to pay around 20,000 for his services.
Image: Ross Halls
