Connell delighted with “pleasing day” for under-18s

With the development squad coach still in the dugout for the under-18s following the announcement of his progression in midweek, the young Cherries delivered an impressive performance.

Despite gaining dominance over the Pirates in both halves, an early Michael Dacosta Gonzalez strike proved the difference at Melksham Town’s Oakfield Stadium.

Reflecting on the performance, Connell shared the victory had been preceded by a good week of training for the under-18s.

“We’ve been really pleased with the boys’ training this week,” he told afcb.co.uk. “They’ve looked after themselves really well over the Christmas period.

“Training has been sharp and the players took that into the game.

“I thought it was a dominant performance where we created a lot of chances and should have won the game more comfortably.”

Claiming three points with a one-goal margin also teed up a scenario which the former striker was pleased to see his side come out of the other side of.

He explained: “Credit to Bristol Rovers because they hung in there and at the end, when you don’t take those chances, you leave yourselves vulnerable to a late goal.

“That was the perfect scenario for our players because we didn’t score that second goal and we had to defend well in the final ten minutes to see the game out.

“There was a lot of maturity and professionalism in that, which pleased me.”

Not only was Connell pleased with the collective performance of his side, but he also reserved praise for Ben Winterburn and Ollie Morgan.

He said: “I’m really happy with the number of chances we created, which made for an enjoyable first game back.

“I’m also really played for Ben Winterburn starting his first game in a year; he got 70 minutes under his belt.

“I thought Ollie Morgan also carried on his recent good run of form, so it was a pleasing day and a welcome start to the new year.”