U23s Head Coach Martin Devaney has hailed his side after they battled to a 1-1 draw against Ipswich Town on Tuesday afternoon.
With several regulars unavailable, a youthful Reds side took to the field at the Oakwell Training Ground to take on the Tractor Boys.
Some even had to play in different positions in order to plug the gaps left by absentees.
Fabio Jalo stepped off the bench to open the scoring in the second half before Ipswich drew level through Tawanda Chirewa.
“I’m delighted,” said Devaney. “I think it was a fantastic performance. Obviously, we had to change and come away from our identity a little bit, just to help the players because they were so young and missing a few players in key positions.
“We had a lot of players playing out of position so the way they adapted with the problem was fantastic.”
Ipswich may have enjoyed more possession, but the Reds were a constant threat on the counter, coming close to beating the visitors’ goalkeeper on numerous occasions.
“We found solutions within the game and I think in the end they probably had the ball a little bit more than us, which was to be expected,” continued Devaney. “But we countered really well and we were a threat on the counter, and really should have had more goals.”
Although the hosts did not boast a wealth of experience on the pitch, they demonstrated admirable maturity against a dangerous Ipswich side.
The experience at U23s level is something Devaney believes will benefit some of the younger players going forward.
“It’s a great experience,” added our U23s Head Coach. “If you’re good enough, you’re old enough, that’s the model we’ve got here at the club.
