Our under-19s picked up three points in the Club Academy Scotland Performance/Advanced Youth League on Monday evening.
The young Saints defeated Kelty Hearts 4-0 at New Central Park thanks to goals from Fran Franczak, Romano Poli (pictured), Lucas Louden and Kole Murray.
It was a strong start from Danny Griffin’s side and it took just eight minutes for them to seize the upper hand.
Franczak took control from the penalty spot to open the scoring.
Moments later, we had a second. This time the ball was worked wide and the delivery picked out midfielder Poli, who finished well from the edge of the box.
Saints added a third before the 20-minute mark when alert striker Louden managed to find space inside the box to find the bottom corner.
Goalkeeper Callum Mustard would save a penalty as the first half reached its conclusion before, late in the second half, Murray netted the fourth with a glancing header from Franczak’s corner.
Coach Danny Griffin said: “It was a great start to the game. We got the ball down and were passing it around nicely.
“We managed to get control early and Fran dispatched the penalty really well. From there, the hard work continued and we scored another couple in quick succession.
“We had a wee chat with them at half-time about keeping standards high. We did come off it a little bit in the second half, but Kole wins a great header at the end to score the fourth.
“Hopefully the result gives them confidence and something to build on. It has shown that they can perform.”
Danny added: “We’re next in action in two weeks’ time against Livingston. That is a shame in a way, but we’ll keep working in training and will look to rectify any wee mistakes we are making.”
