Fulham Under-18s came out on the wrong side of a seven-goal thriller at Motspur Park on Saturday, narrowly losing 4-3 to an in-form West Ham United side.
Callum Osmand and Tom Olyott put us ahead on two occasions in the first half, but we went in level at the break nonetheless. Osmand grabbed his second after going 4-2 down to make it a dramatic finish.
Ma'kel Bogle-Campbell was chosen to partner up with Callum Osmand, in what would represent his eighth Under-18s appearance of the season.
Chibby Nwoko and Ollie Gofford were given the nod in the middle of the park, with the ever-present Lemar Gordon and Tom Olyott starting on each wing.
Eddy Nsasi was called into action straight away for us, using his body to brush West Ham’s Dan Brigge off the ball as he charged towards goal.
We broke away on eight minutes, with Gordon finding time and space down the left-hand side. He fed the ball to Olyott, whose stinging effort was blocked. After some pinball just outside the Hammers area, Gofford then forced goalkeeper Fin Herrick into a save.
Dino Kaiser made an exceptional stop for us not long after, somehow getting his body behind Josh Ajala’s powerful strike from point-blank range. Just seconds later, he came charging out to deny Tyron Akpata.
Kaiser kept us in the game and we made the visitors pay for their missed chances on 28 minutes. Chibby Nwoko did well to twist past a Hammers man before feeding across to Osmand, who made no mistake, slotting past Herrick.

Our lead didn’t last long though, with West Ham grabbing one back a few minutes later. The visitors jumped onto a loose ball, before Rigge cut onto his right foot and finished calmly.
The game was coming to life and we won ourselves a penalty a matter of seconds later, when Bogle-Campbell was pushed to the ground after showing great fight to reach the ball first. Olyott fired into the right corner to put us back ahead.
Both teams were full of quality and West Ham found themselves another equaliser four minutes before the break. Ajala did well to bring down a cross with his chest before poking past Kaiser.
An entertaining half came to an end with the two sides level at 2-2.

The first attempt on goal after the interval came from Gordon, who cut in from the left and forced Herrick into a diving save. An excellent effort from our tricky wide man.
Samuel Amissah planted a header just over soon after, having latched onto a powerful Olyott delivery from a free-kick.
Osmand so nearly put us ahead for a third time on 59 minutes. The nippy forward burst past a couple of defenders but his effort was well saved and the chance went begging.
The young Whites were beginning to dominate as the half progressed, with Bogle-Campbell firing a low effort just wide of the far post as we passed the hour mark.
Just as we looked like we could grab our third, the away side struck down the other end. After twisting and turning in a crowded area, Ajala smashed the ball in from a tight angle to score his second of the game.

Our task was made even tougher on 73 minutes, with the young Hammers adding a fourth. A stroke of good fortune helped the ball to reach Tyron Akpata, who pushed it onto his right before rolling past Kaiser at the near post.
Heads didn't drop and we scored a lovely goal to make it 3-4 with just over 10 minutes remaining. Bradley Slade fizzed in a brilliant delivery, which was stroked home by Osmand with a first time, left-footed finish. A clinical strike from our number nine.
Gordon was causing havoc late on and forced the West Ham defence into a couple of crucial blocks, one from a shot and the other from a dangerous cross.
Osmand had one last chance to secure his hat-trick in stoppage time, but his effort was well saved by Finnick. Our striker did well to bring the ball down and set it for himself in the first place.
Our lads showed great fight and determination, but it was to be defeat for the young Whites.
Possession
56%Shots
10Shots On Target
8Corners
2Fouls
110
0
Cards
1
0
Fulham U18: Kaiser, Brad de Jesus, Amissah, Nsasi, Slade, Nwoko, Olyott (Quashie 74'), Gofford, Bogle-Campbell (Ali Wahid 74'), Gordon, Osmand
Subs: Tabares, Quashie, Ali Wahid, Wingate, Park
West Ham United U18: Herrick, Medine, Briggs, Oyebade, Adiele (Umolu 56'), Mayers, Akpata, Rigge, Caliste (Dike 68'), Sowanmi (Kamara 68'), Ajala (Halim 81')
Subs: Dike, Abraham, Kamara, Umolu, Halim