Mansfield Town’s U18 bowed out of the FA Youth Cup in Round 3 at Premier League AFC Bournemouth at the Vitality Stadium this evening. The Stags deservedly led 1-0 at the break, but were beaten by goals on 67 and 90 minutes to leave the players, management and Stags fans gutted at the final whistle. The Stags were superb in the first half, putting in a dominant performance and leading through a goal from Noah Stokes after 15 minutes. But the Stags had plenty of other chances with Tyrese Sinclair in outstanding form, and Jimmy Knowles hitting the underside of the bar. Sinclair won numerous free kicks with his trickery, and had several impressive shots at goal from distance. He looked special, and it was easy to see why he was on the bench for the Checkatrade Trophy game against Scunthorpe. At the other end Stags keeper Keaton Marrs made two fine saves for the Stags in the first half but Bournemouth created little else. The second half saw Bournemouth come much more into the game and they were marginally on top when they equalised on 67 minutes from a corner. After that, Bournemouth were right on top as the Stags players possibly tired, but it was cruel on the Stags that Bournemouth nicked the winner on the stroke of 90 minutes as Christian Saydee fired into the bottom corner of the net from inside the box. Heart-breaking for the Stags players who had given everything and over the course of the 90 minutes didn’t deserve to be beaten. Every single Stags player can be proud of their performance here. At the back Jordan Armsden and Jamie Chisholm both caught the eye with some superb defending, while Noah Stokes took the plaudits for his goal. Behind them, Keaton Marrs made some fine saves. The entire midfield played well, as the Stags controlled the first half, and Larrell King demonstrated a huge long throw. Up front Knowles and Riley O’Sullivan worked hard, with Knowles unfortunate to be denied by the underside of the bar, though credit to the Bournemouth keeper for getting something on his shot. After the game, Stags youth team boss John Dempster told us he was proud of the players, but the side had paid for missing first half chances. The side are back in action against Chesterfield at the weekend, while the first team are at Forest Green Rovers.
Full report here: https://stagsnet.net/news/newsdetails.php?newsid=9439