Youth Team defender Jeremiah Kamanzi thought Brentford showed great character in their 2-1 win over Charlton Athletic on Saturday morning at Jersey Road.
Jeremiah was an early substitute for captain Gradi Milenge, who went off with a facial injury, as The Bees raced into a 2-0 lead before half-time thanks to a James Ferry brace.
Jon De Souza’s side had chances to kill the game off but saw their lead cut with 10 minutes remaining when Joshua Umerah tapped home at the back post.
However they held on to extend their lead over the third placed Addicks to seven points at the mid-point of the season.
Speaking to Bees Player after the game Jeremiah thought he and his teammates dug deep for the win but felt that they should have killed the game off long before the end.
“I think it was very well deserved win today,” said Jeremiah.
“Today we battled and dug in quite deep.
“We created quite a lot of chances and we varied our play and combinations.
“Charlton were a long ball team and quite physical and we had to dig in.
“We knew they would be and today showed our character and how well the dressing room is going.
“As a team we are together and doing well.
“Coming on I knew what I had to do.
“Coming on that early was a big surprise to me but it was good for me to get on and show the coaches what I can do.
“It is always in your mind that they could get it back but we held them off and got a good result.
“I felt we could have finished them off in the last few minutes with our counter-attacking play.
“Some of the chances we created were clear cut.
“We should have finished them off but we dug deep and got the win.”
Charlton looked to press The Bees high up the pitch putting pressure on Brentford’s passing game.
However for large periods of the first-half Brentford were able to play through that press and get in behind Charlton’s midfield.
Jeremiah was really pleased with that side to Brentford’s game and the way that players combined to create space.
Playing behind Courtney Senior for the first-half gave Jeremiah a lot of confidence and he feels like he has a good playing relationship with the quick winger.
“We have been working on combinations in training,” said Jeremiah.
“Today showed what we can do when we combine and implement training in the game.
“We knew that Charlton would be a physical pressing team but we needed to play through them.
“It worked really well.
“We dug deep in the second-half and got stuck in.
“Sometimes games are going to change and you need to find a way to get through and we did that.
“I have a good combination with Courtney Senior.
“You can give him the ball and let him do his things one on one.
“He shows his ability to do that and as a full-back that gives you lots of confidence.
“If you can give him the ball he can do what he has to do.
“Sometimes you can go forward but then you take away the space for Courtney to run into and get one on one with people.
“When Courtney went off I could join in but it is good thing that I have him on my side.”
The win means it is now just one defeat in seven for the Youth Team as they continue to lead the way in the Under-18 Professional Development League Two South.
Next up in the league is a trip to Swansea City on Saturday before another long trip to Hull City next Tuesday in the FA Youth Cup.
Going into those games Jeremiah believes that confidence is very high within the group and that is only helping to drive the team on to even higher standards.
“Confidence in the group is very high,” said Jeremiah.
“We are getting better as players and we understand each other better as players and that is showing in games now.
“We are getting a good run of form going.
“Swansea City and Hull City will be two different tests because they are two different teams who play different styles.
“We want to go away to Hull in the FA Youth Cup in a good confident mood and I think we can win both games.
“We just see them as another team and we are confident that we can beat anyone we play.
“It will be a good challenge for us to go there.
“It is a great environment and we are enjoying our football at the moment.
“We are learning a lot as we are going and we are pushing each other to learn more.
“You can see that in our performances.
“When you see teammates pushing themselves harder it makes you better as a player.
“We want to play for each other and get each other into the right frame of mind to play properly.”
You can see the full interview with Jeremiah