Josh Briggs was delighted to play his role in West Ham United U18s' 4-1 victory against Norwich City.
The Northern Irish defender started Saturday’s match on the bench at the Lotus Training Centre but was called upon sooner than planned, replacing Tyron Akpata 18 minutes into proceedings, with the Hammers 1-0 ahead after George Earthy’s early strike.
Elliot Myles equalised before the interval but second half goals from Divin Mubama, Kaelan Casey and Lewis Orford saw the Irons emerge with a commanding 4-1 victory.
Kevin Keen’ young Hammers are now 15 points clear at the top of the U18 Premier League South table. The U18s need just four points from their next five games to secure the title, and favourable results elsewhere could see the side win the league as early as next weekend.
“It was a great win,” Briggs told whufc.com. “It’s always a surprise to come on so early when you start the match on the bench. Norwich managed to score just before half-time which was obviously a setback for us.
“We made some changes at half-time and we adapted really well in the second half which allowed us to overcome Norwich. We dealt with them a lot better in the second half and we defended well.”
The centre back was pleased with the way that the Irons responded in the second half after a difficult end to the first half.
He continued: “We had to dig deep at times in the first half. Norwich played well and sensed an opportunity to get back into the match. They created lots of chances and they really came for us.
"It was really tough after their goal, we made a lot of clearances and blocks and fortunately we were able to respond in the second half.
“We knew that we had to take control of the game again and we spoke about that at half-time. The coaches told us to keep working hard and to keep the ball. We also changed formation and went to a back four and that helped us a lot. In the end I think that our intensity was too much for them and we showed our quality when we needed to.
“We could have scored seven or eight. We created so many chances and, on another day, we would have scored more but I’m just thankful that we got the three points.”
The young Hammers can win the league as soon as next week if they beat West Brom and second-placed Fulham fail to win at Norwich.
Briggs is determined to take things one match at a time though and says that the squad is focused on getting three points next week against West Brom.
“We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves. We’re obviously in a great position but we need to stay focused because we have some tough games coming up. We’re delighted with today’s win, and we can’t wait to go again next week.”
