Richards left disappointed by U23s’ defeat

Gary Richards expressed his disappointment as Swansea City’s Under-23s suffered a 5-2 Premier League 2 defeat away against West Ham.

Nathan Holland fired the home side into the lead inside the opening minute at the Chigwell Construction Stadium before George Byers stabbed home an equaliser after Courtney Baker-Richardson forced a smart save from Nathan Trott.

The Hammers retook the lead though Grandy Diangana’s fine strike as Dan Kemp and a brace from Toni Martinez put the game beyond doubt for West Ham before Baker-Richardson netted a late consolation.

“We are very disappointed with our performance today.” Richards said.

“We did not turn up and West Ham were better than us in all departments.

“We let ourselves down with our style of play. We gave the ball away far too cheaply, failed to take our chances and looked vulnerable for too much of the game.

“As a team we have had some positive results this month with a win in the Checkatrade Trophy and a draw against Manchester United.

“But today’s performance shows we have not moved forward so we must get back on the training ground and work harder.

“We knew this league was going to be a big challenge and it is proving that. We must make sure we show resilience and learn quickly off the back of a result like this.”