Cobham 1-2 Fulham U18s

Fulham Under-18s recorded a 2-1 win at Cobham on Tuesday evening in their penultimate pre-season friendly.

A Seth Ridgeon double saw Ali Melloul’s side head into the break with a two goal lead, with our Young Whites holding on for the victory despite Derick Hayford scoring a stunning free-kick for Cobham with 20 minutes remaining.

Cobham nearly took an early lead when Hayford’s cross from the left found the head of Jacob De Sa, only for his header to sail wide.

Clear cut chances were at a premium early on, although some solid defending in the box gave us the platform to push on later in the half. Tom Wingate nearly gave our Young Whites the lead in spectacular fashion, stealing the ball off Anthony Nazareth on the halfway line before seeing his audacious lobbed effort fly just over the bar.

Wingate played an instrumental role in the opening goal. The young striker held the ball up in the penalty area before laying it off to Ridgeon, who found the back of the net with a driven shot into the corner.

It was a quickfire double for Ridgeon who finished off a smart move on the stroke of half-time. Harley Platel found Ridgeon in the box with an intelligent reverse ball, with the midfielder taking one touch before finishing past Rourke Pickford.

A deflected Farhaan Ali Wahid effort and a blocked Wingate shot from the edge of the area were as close as we came to extending our lead to three, before Hayford brought a goal back for Cobham with a sweetly-struck, dipping free-kick.

Ridgeon was keen to restore the two goal advantage as he danced past two Cobham midfielders in the middle of the park before dragging his shot wide of the near post.

A late Cobham chance fell to Kallum Peart who showed good balance after holding off a couple of defenders, but his fierce strike flew over the bar.

A controlled performance and more valuable minutes in the tank for the lads as they prepare for the Under-18s Premier League opener on Saturday 17th August.