Swansea City U23s’ character and resilience pleases Jon Grey

Swansea City Under-23s coach Jon Grey was thrilled by the character and resilience his side demonstrated as they twice came from behind to beat Charlton Athletic 4-3 in the Professional Development League South.

The young Swans recorded their first victory in nine attempts, with Ali Al-Hamadi’s hat-trick helping them to a hugely creditable three points against the in-form Addicks.

Fielding a side with players boasting over 400 senior appearances worth of experience, Charlton had won four of their last six games and led 2-1 heading into the final 20 minutes at Princes Park.

However, the visitors turned the contest on its head, with three goals in the space of 10 minutes putting them 4-2 in front.

And, despite the hosts pulling a goal back and subsequently launching a late rally, Grey’s youngsters stood firm to secure the spoils.

The under-23s coach was pleased by the way his players held their own in testing conditions, and is hopeful they can build on their momentum.

“We played well; our performances have gradually improved since Christmas,” the under-23s coach said.

“They played as we wanted them to on a difficult pitch. We stuck to our principles and moved the ball around really well.

“We were resilient because we went 1-0 down and came back. In the past, we’ve capitulated and had a mad 10 minutes where we’ve conceded a couple of goals.

“We stayed in the game and got back to 1-1. I hoped our heads wouldn’t drop when we went 2-1 down.

“But, to be fair to the boys, they responded really well. For the next 15 or 20 minutes we took a good grip on the game, created a lot of chances and scored three goals.

“We haven’t shown character and resilience in the past, but they’re really good attributes to have in the game. 

“They threw the kitchen sink at us and had a real good go in the last few minutes, but we held on excellently and saw the game out.

“It was really pleasing and, hopefully, they can kick on now.”