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Caudwell reacts to Barrow result
Forest lose out to League Two side
Results concludes Forest’s Vertu Trophy campaign
Jody Caudwell admitted Nottingham Forest are disappointed to exit the Vertu Trophy at the group stage phase but highlighted the development opportunities as positives the young Reds can take from the experience.
Forest faced League Two sides Tranmere Rovers and Barrow, alongside League One outfit Blackpool, in the first round of the competition.
Seven under-18s have appeared for the young Reds in this season’s competition, with all gaining valuable experience on their footballing journeys.
The young Reds rounded off the campaign with a 2–0 defeat against Barrow on Tuesday evening, and while Caudwell admitted there was disappointment with the exit from the competition, the opportunities the tournament provides for the younger players at the club are crucial for their development.
“We’re disappointed with the final result, but in the first half we played some really nice stuff. We lacked a bit of cutting edge in the final third with that final pass in and around the box.
“After half-time we wanted the lads to keep playing, especially through our two sixes to the creative players at the top end of the pitch, but I think we started to tire in the second half a bit.
“They were more aggressive with their press and ended up creating more opportunities in that second half, and we conceded a couple of disappointing goals from our point of view – they didn’t really carve us open in the game.
“It was disappointing after a bright first half, but we take the positives. We had four under-18s starting the game. We have some really creative players who have joined the B Team this year, which has given them the opportunity to play men’s football.
“The competition is really good for us; it helps the players understand the challenges of league football irrespective of where they’re at on their development journey.
“Our strategy is to play our younger players and give them the opportunity to experience men’s football, and this year we’ve managed to get seven players appearing in the Vertu Trophy.
“We’re disappointed that we’ve not managed to make it out of the group, but we’ve had three really close games against senior sides, and it has created challenges for our young players.”