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Portsmouth U18 v Dagenham and Redbridge U18

11am  10 September 2016

English Football League Youth Alliance Cup, Second Round
Portsmouth U18 3 Dagenham and Redbridge U18 4 (att 46)

The last time I visited Portsmouth University's Langstone campus for youth team football Pompey's youngsters played on pitch W4, but the demise of the students' own Saturday league team means they've now switched to pitch W1.

Whether or not to return to a venue to tick off a different pitch can be a conundrum. Getting from Manchester to Portsmouth in time for a morning kick off isn't easy, but the new pitch is some distance from the old one, and is fully enclosed by a plastic post and rail barrier ... so I decided to make the effort.

I was rewarded with a great game, albeit played in horrendous wet and windy conditions. I'd expected Portsmouth to win this tie with ease, but they conceded three times in the opening half-an-hour or so.

The home side had some hope when the pulled a goal back before half time, but a fourth for the visitors looked to have put the game out of reach. Ultimately it secured the win, but Dagenham and Redbridge endured a nervous end to the game as Portsmouth scored twice and pushed in vain for an equaliser,







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