Academy boss Bryan Klug paid tribute to the character of his side and has special praise for the defenders and 'keeper Shane Supple after the Youth Cup Final success.

Speaking to the Club website following a 1-0 extra-time win over Southampton to clinch the tie 3-2 on aggregate, Bryan said: "The boys were fantastic and really dug in for the 120 minutes.

"Southampton are a terrific side and probably felt they were unfortunate still to be level at full-time but our defenders and 'keeper were outstanding.

"James Krause did well on the left side, Michael Synnott played in pain and was terrific and the two lads in the middle, Chris Casement and Aidan Collins, were great for us.

"Shane was superb as well, the double save in the second-half was top class and they never wilted under the pressure Southampton put us under.

"But it shows the character the boys have, the whole team gave their all and while we didn't match the level of performance from the first-leg, the spirit shone through again and got us that trophy."

Bryan admitted it was a gamble putting 15-year-old schoolboy Ed Upson on the bench, the youngster grabbing the winner three minutes from time on his debut in the competition.

"Yes, we took a chance on him but he's a level headed lad and we were quietly confident that he would handle the occasion," he added.