Our under-21s were beaten 1-0 by Ipswich Town in the Premier League 2 on Friday night, bringing our five-match unbeaten run to an end.
Ipswich started well and led at the halfway point through a stunning strike from Tudor Mendel, with Max Dowman coming close to an equaliser in first-half stoppage time.
We responded well in the second half having gone in behind at the break, but were unable to break a stubborn Ipswich defence down.
### what happened
After a quiet opening ten minutes, the Tractor Boys had the first chance of the game when Tudor Mendel teed up Frankie Runham on the edge of the area, only for Tommy Setford to make an excellent near-post save.
The visitors turned their pressure into the opening goal after 18 minutes when Mendel cut inside onto his left foot and curled an unstoppable finish into the far corner.
Our first opportunity to respond came just before the half hour mark when Max Dowman's free-kick almost found the head of Marli Salmon, but Ipswich goalkeeper Nicholas Bilokapic took it right off the defender's head to keep his side ahead.
We continued to push for an equaliser and almost had one right on half-time, but after an excellent run from Dowman, the midfielder placed his effort just wide of the post.
After the break, we dominated the first 20 minutes of the second half and come close to an equaliser when Ceadach O'Neill's strike from range stung the hands of Bilokapic.
The tempo increased with a late double substitution from Max Porter, which saw Archie Stevens and Josh Ogunnaike introduced.
But it was Andre Harriman-Annous who came closest to levelling the scores when he forced a quick reaction save from Bilokapic with two minutes to go.
Our Gunners kept the pressure on throughout stoppage time, but Ipswich held on to take all three points.
### What it means
Our under-21s remain in a strong position to qualify for the playoffs despite our five-match unbeaten run coming to an end.
### what's next
Max Porter's side travel to East Anglia to face Norwich City away from home on Friday, March 6. Kick-off at the Colney Training Centre is scheduled for 7pm (UK).
### LINE-UPS
**Arsenal XI:** Setford, Dixon (Ferdinand, 89'), Washington (Ogunnaike, 80'), Clarke, Salmon, Ibrahim (Stevens, 80'), O'Neill, Julienne, Mooney, Dowman (Bailey-Joseph, 46'), Harriman-Annous
**Subs:** Porter, Ferdinand
**Ipswich XI:** Bilokapic, Elliott, Boniface, Mthunzi, Wilkinson, Turner, Mendel (Adebayo, 87'), Compton, Fletcher (Trialist, 77'), Taylor, Runham (Pitts, 70')
**Subs:** Bentley, Lewis
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