Under-18s coach Greg Crane says he was pleased with his side’s performance against Crystal Palace, despite the team going down to a 1-0 defeat.
Victor Akinwale scored the only goal of the game in the Under-18 Premier League South match at the Lotus Training Centre, but there were still plenty of positives to take for Norwich City.
“It was a really pleasing performance,” said Greg. “We worked on a few things during the week, and we started the game really well and implementing the things that we had worked on, and we got into some really good areas. It was the story of our season so far though in that we were a little bit short in terms of putting those chances away.
“In terms of the overall performance, I was really happy with the attitude of the players. They competed well and made it uncomfortable for Palace and they did the same to us. It was a real competitive game all around, so I am really pleased with the boys and how they did.”
Asked if his strikers needed to show more composure in the final third, he added: “It is not just the strikers. We want midfielders to score, and we want centre-backs to score from set-pieces. It is also about how create moments, so it is not just them (the strikers) it is the whole team.
“It is about having that composure in the final third and just being relaxed. They have got to come through this. They have got to learn what it is like not to score goals and how you deal with that. They have got to ask: How am I reacting? Am I fully focused on scoring a goal, am I helping the team, am I helping somebody create another chance?
"So, it is tough for the lads, but they have got to learn from it, and they have got to come through. Then, hopefully, that will help them further on in their careers.”