Mansfield Town U18s land plum Arsenal tie reward for FA Youth Cup win at Barnsley
Mansfield Town's U18s have landed a plum third round tie in the FA Youth Cup with a home game against Premier League giants Arsenal.
A lone TJ Grimes goal on 50 minutes saw the young Stags win 1-0 at Barnsley on Monday night and has come with a huge reward with the young Gunners now due on a date to be arranged next month.
A delighted Nigel Clough, still upset over his side’s defeat at Northampton, said: “That is the only thing that has cheered us up in the last few days. They were very good and deserved their victory.
“Barnsley put them under pressure in the last 10 minutes but for 80 minutes we were very good indeed.
“It is a big win. Barnsley have a very strong academy and the reward of Arsenal at home now is brilliant for the lads.”
He added: “It also shows the improvement they have made in the last five years.
“It hasn't quite yet seen players come through into the first team, but among the group we have at the moment, and just below that, there are quite a few with a good chance of making it through.
“An academy is a long term project and you have to be incredibly patient with them.
“You need to give them five to 10 years. That might seem an awfully long time in football, but for an academy it isn't. Five years ago when we came in we went to Burton, who have a good set-up, and narrowly lost. But that performance last night was on a different level to anything from five years ago.”