Ian Dawes proud of Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town's head of academy coaching Ian Dawes was proud of his brave young side after a narrow Football League Youth Alliance Cup defeat to Luton.
Two second-half goals from Hatters forward Freddie Hinds were enough for the visitors, despite Chris Gallagher's spot-kick.
Dawes had nothing but praise for the under-18 side, who finished the Greenhous Meadow final with a couple of under-16 players in the action.
He said: "I thought the lads from start to finish were outstanding in how they applied themselves to the game.
"They worked hard, they fought and towards the end of the first-half we had a couple of good chances, so going into we were feeling a little bit confident.
"There was just a couple of key moments defensively in the second-half that inevitably cost us the game.
"However, we didn't stop and the young guys that we had did really well and made it a good cup tie – they'll all be better for the experience."
Dawes pointed towards Luton's experience and maturity but there was little in the final, played in front of an impressive crowd of 622 at the Meadow.
