Why Portsmouth academy youngsters were creating history at Erith Town in the FA Youth Cup

Both Pompey Academy and Erith Town had reasons to be happy after their FA Youth Cup first-round meeting on Wednesday night.
By Mark McMahon
Published 4th Nov 2021, 14:59 BST
Alfie Bridgman scored the only goal of the game as Pompey's academy youngsters bear Erith Town 1-0 in the first round of the FA Youth Cup.Alfie Bridgman scored the only goal of the game as Pompey's academy youngsters bear Erith Town 1-0 in the first round of the FA Youth Cup.
Alfie Bridgman scored the only goal of the game as Pompey's academy youngsters bear Erith Town 1-0 in the first round of the FA Youth Cup.

Pompey booked their place in the second round of the competition thanks to an Alfie Bridgman goal in the first half.

Meanwhile, despite exiting the cup, hosts Erith took comfort from the fact that a record crowd descended on their Bexley-based ground to watch the game.

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In total 444 spectators were present at the Erith Sports Stadium to cheer on the young Dockers and their guests from the south coast, bringing in some welcome revenue to the Southern Counties east league premier division club.

That made for a cracking atmosphere – something which both sets of players enjoyed and will benefit from.

Indeed, it’s the type of crowd which the majority of the Blues’ players will have never experienced, with only Bridgman and Harry Jewitt-White having featured for the first team.

The Pompey Academy side are currently top of the Youth Alliance League following their 6-3 win against Plymouth at the weekend.

They await news on their second-round opponents.

Related topics:PortsmouthPompey