Hitchin Town beat an Arsenal U18 side 2-0 at Top Field on Saturday morning.

Two own goals from the young guns sealed the victory for the Canaries after Josh Robinson put through his own goal after only 120 seconds.

Substitute goalkeeper Alex Kovacevic fumbled an Alex Brown cross with the ball ending up in the net with Mark Burke's side doubling their lead five minutes after the break.

Read the Gooner Fanzine's PLAYER RATINGS 

Hitchin Town:

1 - Charlie Horlock: 7.5 - Alert and composed, good distribution. Deserved his clean sheet, especially after his late double save

2 - Max Ryan:  7.5 – Tested Gunners keeper Remy Mitchell with a low first half shot and was combative throughout

3 - Alex Brown: 7.5 - Responsible for the cross that led to replacement keeper Kovacevic’s second half fumble. An excellent game

4 – Ryan Smith: 7.5 - Influential in the heart of battle

5 – Dan Webb:  8 – Captain, leader, Canaries legend he certainly let the young guns knew they were in a game

6 – Lawrie Marsh: 7 - A solid 45 minutes prior to be subbed off  

7 – Alex Marsh: 7.5 - Thudded Mitchell’s near post early on and tested the young visitors before being replaced

8 – John Coldicott-Stephens: 7 – Solid but fair challenges tested the young opponents

9  - Callum Stead:  7.5 – Engaged in a lively duel with Gunners defender Robinson. Threatened his young opponent’s backline throughout with excellent running and good touches.

10 Luke Brown: 7 - Offered a threat offensively but did not neglect his defensive duties

11 Rio Dasilva:  7 – Driving runs had the Gunners defence backpedalling at times

Substitutes:

Henry Snee: 6.5 - On for Stead

Darrian Furlong: 6

Malachi Black: 6

Lewis Barker: 7

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Arsenal U18

1 - Remy Mitchell: 7 - No chance with Robinson’s early own goal and stood firm against an early Canaries onslaught

2 – Taylor Foran: 7 – Neat and tidy with a good touch. Had a good game at right back before being replaced shortly after the interval

3 – Henry Jeffcott : 7.5– Looked calm and composed at the heart of the Gunners backline. Comfortable playing out from the back but equally confident in asserting his physicality.  Will be interesting to chart his progress this season

4 – Ismail Ouland M’Hand: 6.5 – A great talent but not as influential as he would have liked to have been before being replaced in the second half. Will have learned from the experience

5 - Josh Robinson: 6 – Nightmare start for the young gun after being pressured into an own goal on the line

6 - Mauro Bandeira: 7 – Always available to give and receive a pass, often in tight circumstances

7 – Reuell Walters: 7 - Excellent technique, always had time, even when challenged

8 – Matthaues Roberts: 6.5 – Neat touches

9 – K’hayon Edwards: 7 – Lively at times but not as influential as he would have liked but wasn’t for lack of effort. Remember the name, as this lad is a real prospect

10 – Charles Sague JR: 6.5 – Worked hard in trying to breach the Canaries backline

11 – Tino Quamina: 6.5 – Talented but raw

Substitutes:

Alex Kovacevic: 5 – On for keeper Mitchell during the break. You have to feel for the young keeper after his fumble from Alex Brown’s cross led to the second Canaries goal. Will learn from the experience and be better for it

Elian Quesada Thorn: 6 – Replaced Foran after the interval

Billy Vigar: 6 - Keen to make an impression

Timi Henry Davies: 6

James Lannin-Sweet: 6

Amani Richards: 6 – Drove into the box but fired over when well placed