Luis McCoy praised the drama of the FA Youth Cup after Pools overcame Marine on penalties, following a 1-1 draw at Horden Welfare Park.
Speaking after the game, McCoy said: “It felt like a scrappy cup tie,” he added. “We found a foothold in the game at times, but I think we could still have been a lot better with the ball.
“Credit to Marine; they came, and they knew what they wanted to do. They wanted to make it really difficult, aggressive in tackles and on the front foot at times.”
Reflecting on Pools’ reaction after the break, McCoy said: “We managed it well in the second half,” he confirmed. “We showed what quality we have when we can move the ball quickly.
“That was where the goal came from. If we could have done that a little bit more, I think we’d have made it a little bit easier for ourselves.
“At half-time we said we need to take care of the ball in the final third and get those little passes with extra detail right.
“In the second half, we carried that into our play. I did say to them, if you get one detail right in the next 10 to 15 minutes, you will score, and they made that happen. I wish we could have made that happen more as the half progressed.”
On the reaction to conceding a 90th-minute equaliser, McCoy said: “You have got to deal with it,” he said. “It can be hard to readjust, but you have to pick yourself up and not dwell on it.
“We had to get that out of their heads quickly and reset their mindset.”
McCoy spoke about the moments the FA Youth Cup can provide: “That is what is so amazing about the Youth Cup; someone always gets their moment. Joe Hood has his moment tonight, and he will carry that through his career with him.
“Alfie Swift started on the bench; I told him in training, you are going to have an impact; you are going to be needed. He has just scored the winning penalty; that is the beauty of the cup.”
McCoy highlighted the importance of the competition for young players: “A lot of the time in academy football, we focus on the development aspects and bringing the players along individually.
“The FA Youth Cup provides a platform to expose them to what first team environments feel like, playing for what is a win and then the winning feeling after the game.”
