Nwachuku scored after just 42 seconds to put the U’s 1-0 in front and, after he had added a second, Mason Stewart grabbed a third just before the half-hour mark. Olufemi’s second-half double added gloss to the visitors’ win, but Head of Youth Ricky Duncan maintained that he was pleased with certain aspects of the match.
“I’m disappointed with the result, of course, but not with the performance,” he said after the game. “Between the two penalty areas, we were excellent, but we struggled defensively and made some silly mistakes and then, when chances came our way, we didn’t take them. The two lads up front didn’t hold the ball up at all today, and that disappointed me, but we’ll work on that.”
“We put ourselves on the back foot by conceding in the first minute. Once you do that, you are always chasing the game,” he added of Colchester’s blistering start. Ross Gilfedder was allowed the time and space to cross on the right-hand side, and Nwachuku ghosted into the penalty area to slant a side-footed finish into Luke Chambers’ bottom left-hand corner.
The north Essex club almost added a second within three minutes when Stewart’s cross, delivered with the outside of his right foot, had to be gathered by Chambers and only the ball later brushing Banton’s leg prevented Freddy Ladapo’s searing shot from flying into the net.
Blues’ first opportunity of note arrived in the 17th minute when Ryan Auger led a break from a U’s corner. The full-back searched out Jack Payne and he squared for Jack Paxman, who tracked across the penalty area before firing straight at goalkeeper Shaun Phillips.
Just after the mid-point of the opening period, Shamir Mullings attempted to replicate Nwachuku’s finish when Bridge centred from the right flank, but his low effort was pushed out by Phillips before defender Connor Cranmer stole the ball off Payne’s toecaps as he tried to convert the rebound.
However, the Shrimpers’ hopes of levelling were dashed inside sixty seconds as Colchester added two quickfire goals. The first came on 27 minutes as Nwachuku rose above a sea of players to head Gus Mafuta’s right-wing corner into the top left-hand corner.
And worse followed when ex-Blues trainee Ladapo collected the ball inside the six-yard box shortly afterwards. He passed to Stewart, who prodded past Chambers from close range. The Southend shotstopper leapt backwards to scoop the ball away from the goal-line, but his efforts were to no avail as the match officials concurred that it had crossed the whitewash.
Mullings could have pulled a goal back just before the break when he took the ball wide of Phillips after latching onto Jack Edwards’ flick-on, but he crossed instead of shooting, and the Shrimpers were indebted to Chambers at the other end for a brilliant fingertip save from Sean O’Sullivan’s towering header in first-half stoppage time.
The second period started with Phillips making himself big to block Mullings’ attempt from a raking Banton pass, but Colchester were soon on the front foot themselves, and Gilfedder headed over. Then, in the 63rd minute, the U’s extended their advantage as Mafuta slid Olufemi clear on the left-hand side of the penalty area and he angled a shot across Chambers into the bottom right-hand corner.
Mullings nodded James Pinnock’s right-wing cross over and Seedy Njie’s glancing header had neither enough purchase to deflect Bridge’s cross into the net nor little enough to aid Payne’s own attempts to touch in at the back post.
With eleven minutes still to play, Colchester scored their fifth. Nwachuku saw his efforts blunted by Furlonge, but the loose ball ran into the path of Olufemi, and he nonchalantly chipped it into the top left-hand corner from 20 yards out.
Mullings smashed wastefully over after holding off a defender to race onto Njie’s pass, but that was the latter’s last involvement in the match as he suffered concussion after a collision on the edge of the penalty area, a situation that leaves his participation in Tuesday night’s FA Youth Cup First Round tie with Corinthian in serious doubt.
Phillips was required to make a superb save to keep out Auger’s resultant free-kick, and that left Blues with nothing to show for their toil. Nonetheless, Duncan accentuated the positives from the game, reflecting on impressive performances by two of the Under-16 squad in the match.
Southend United U18s: Luke Chambers, Ryan Auger, Robert Hyams, Jack Edwards, Josh Banton, Anthony Furlonge, Marlon Agyakwa (James Pinnock 68), Jack Paxman (Seedy Njie 50), Shamir Mullings, Jack Bridge, Jack Payne (Charlie Cole 78).
Substitutes not used: Aaron Tatham, Michael Hassini.
Cautioned: Auger (75 - foul tackle), Edwards (83 - reckless play).
Thanks to the Shrimpers Trust website for the reprinting of these reports, for the Trust's own youth section: www.shrimperstrust.co.uk