Another game and another victory for Bristol City's youngsters who made it seven wins in their first eight matches to remain undefeated at the beginning of the campaign.
The Under-21s have proved they are going to be a force to be reckoned with this season and that was certainly the case on Tuesday as Sam Bell scored twice to give the Robins a 2-1 victory over Swansea.
The striker scored goals in each half to put City into a commanding lead before Tarrelle Whittaker gave Swansea hope to breach Stefan Bajic's goal for the first time in home colours.
The keeper, making his third successive start, impressed once again with a series of comfortable saves but it was his authority from crosses that really made him stand out. Joe Low marshalled the defence superbly again with Raph Araoye playing to his left and Jamie Lebel-Knight to his right.
There was also a rare appearance for left wing-back Taine Anderson who featured for the U18s last season. He'll now have his opportunity to stake a claim after Josh Owers sealed a loan move to Gloucester City last week.
Millwall's defeat to Reading on Monday means City are top of the table, a point behind their London league rivals with the two sides going up against each other next week. For now, here's the players that stood out in City's dogged victory.
Sam Bell
Played like a forward who has seen his youth striker partner Tommy Conway thrive in the first team and wants a slice of the action. It took him two minutes to maintain his impressive form by emphatically firing in the opener after just two minutes.
He latched onto Seb Palmer-Houlden's excellent ball over the top on the right side of the box, moved the ball on his left foot and hammered an unstoppable strike into the roof of the net.
It was his fourth goal in three games and that set the tone for his performance. Swansea couldn't live with his movement and runs in behind and much of that was to do with his link-up play alongside Palmer-Houlden.
His strike partner would drop deep into space allowing space for Bell to run in behind down the right side of the pitch. He could and perhaps should have had a second before half-time when his superb reverse pass into Palmer-Houlden came back to his feet before Swansea's Wasiri Williams felt the full force of his effort straight into his face.
He drifted out of the game slightly at the beginning of the second half but as all good strikers do, was alert to his opportunity when offered to him. Omar Taylor-Clarke's pass found the forward inside the area and he just had the keeper to beat. A player in his form was never going to miss and he confidently slotted it into the bottom corner for his second.
Seb Palmer-Houlden
It was a very unselfish performance by the towering striker who caused problems for the two Swansea defenders all afternoon. He met his match when their two brute defenders tried to let him know he was in a game but it was no issue for Palmer-Houlden.
If anything, it spurned him on and his link-up play was outstanding throughout the contest. He's a completely different player and build to Bell which makes their partnership intriguing to watch.
While Bell likes to run behind the backline and use his pace, Palmer-Houlden is more suited to dropping deeper, collecting the ball from deep with his back to goal and laying it into his team mates. His assist for Bell was a touch of pure class.
It was a delightful flick over the top of the defence, almost telepathic with Bell who barely needed to break stride to get onto the ball. As mentioned above, it was his partnership with Bell that really impressed.
The pair are getting more minutes on the pitch together and it's proving evident that they are learning each other's game. This was up there as their best performances as a duo for the Under-21s this season.
His pace can also be deceiving due to his tall and skinny frame. He may not come across as the most natural athlete but his runs down the channels, when required, was further evidence of the attributes he has in his locker.
The only thing missing from his performance was a goal which he should have had in the first half when he was gifted an opportunity from a terrible goalkeeping error. It seemed to catch him by surprise and he couldn't get the ball out of his feet quick enough to turn it into the net.
Omar Taylor-Clarke
The central midfielder's performances sometimes go under the radar when playing alongside the likes of Dylan Kadji and Josh Owers. Today, he played the full 90 minutes in a midfield trio alongside Joe Porton with Kadji sitting deep in front of the defence and it provided him with freedom to get forward.
Taylor-Clarke's performance was full of energy and while still raw in parts of his game, it's clear there's plenty about his game to enjoy. Defensively, he's a real nuisance. He barely gives his marker a second on the ball and he's effective in the challenge - strong and doesn't shy away from sticking a foot in.
His best moment came in the second half when he broke the lines in the final third and played a brilliant ball through to Bell in the area who fired in City's second of the contest. It was a perfectly weighted pass having had the vision to pick out a gap in the back line and exploit it.
With the clock ticking and Swansea pushing for an equaliser, Taylor-Clarke showed his intelligence when he picked up the ball under the pressure of two opposition players. He used his strength to hold them off, dropped his shoulder to create a yard of space before winning a free-kick to relieve the pressure.
He's still a work in progress and he'll need to work on his passing game this season to continue progressing. There were times when his balls forward were wayward of their target or were intercepted after lacking enough pace.
However, that can be worked on but it was encouraging to see him have the confidence to lift his head up to try and find the feet of Palmer-Houlden or run of Bell.
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