Hatters youngsters fall to Daggers
The Town Under-18s’ 22-match unbeaten run this season was ended by a 3-1 defeat by Dagenham & Redbridge on Saturday morning.
The Hatters went into the game having reached the fourth round of the FA Youth Cup with victory at Notts County on Tuesday, but Paul Driver’s side struggled to get to the grips with a heavy pitch and lost for the first time in a 30-game sequence stretching back to last season.
Dagenham went 1-0 in front after just two minutes and doubled their lead to go further ahead on 20 minutes.
The Town got themselves back into the game on 25 minutes when Freddie Hinds took a chance in the box when the ball fell at his feet following a corner to net his 14th goal of the season.
But Dagenham scored again just before the break to make it 3-1 and the Hatters were unable to find a way back in the second half.
A disappointed Driver told lutontown.co.uk: “To put it simply Dagenham were better than us.
“We’ve got to give them credit because they adapted better to the conditions. It was a tough old game for us but one which the boys will learn a lot from.
“They’ll be games in their future careers like this, where they need to stand up to the opposition and cope with different styles and conditions.”
The Hatters youngsters aim to start another unbeaten run on Tuesday when they take on Stevenage.
Town: Gooch, Bean (sub James 58), McJannett, McGhan-George, Famewo; Brown (sub Read 52), Cotter, Atkinson, Bakinson; Murray, Verney (sub Hinds 22). Subs: Shamola, Gordon-Stern.