Taylor Perry’s sweetly-struck free-kick, Chem Campbell’s exquisite curling finish and Harry Birtwistle’s solo effort secured all three points at Aggborough, lifting Collins’ side – which saw a first start in gold and black for former Manchester City youngster Joe Hodge – into third place in the Premier League 2 Division 2 table.
Utilising a squad mixed with experienced pros, such as Yerson Mosquera, Luke Cundle and Perry, as well as exciting scholars who helped guide the under-18s to a first FA Youth Cup semi-final appearance in 17 years, Collins feels the balance will serve his play-off chasing squad well for the final six matches of the campaign.
On overcoming the Villans
“We came into the game on a good run of results, so the boys felt confident going into the game and I think you could see that. We started the game really well, we were straight on the front foot and TP [Taylor Perry] scored a really good free-kick.
“That obviously settled things, but they had a little spell. We settled into the game and I thought we were controlling the game well, Chem [Campbell] got the second goal with a real bit of quality, but once we got the second, it was the case of making sure we defended properly and did everything right in the second-half to go on and win the game, which is what we did.
“Harry [Birtwistle] then got the third goal and it ended up being a really successful evening and quite comfortable in the end.”
WHAT a free-kick!
— Wolves Academy (@WolvesAcademy) March 18, 2022
Taylor Perry gets us off to a flying start 🔥 pic.twitter.com/rPVsY7JAK6
On making a quick start
“You always want to start games well and we work on putting pressure on early doors, try to win all the second balls and see if we can put the pressure on, and we did that really well.
“It led to the free-kick, a terrific free-kick from TP, but I was pleased with how we won the second balls straight from the kick-off, and everyone was aggressive to those second balls, which won us the free-kick and allowed us to score.
“It was important we started fast against our local rivals and you want to start games well, which is what we did. The goals obviously settle you down, and from then on it was a comfortable night.”
On scoring from another free-kick
“We’ve got a few who can take them well – or a few who fancy themselves to take them well! Last year throughout the under-23s, TP had a very good streak and scored quite a few, but he lost the pecking order when he went out on loan and when he came back, other lads had moved ahead of him.
“Obviously Chem scored with a successful one a few weeks ago and then Luke Cundle took one against West Brom which Lee [Harkin] got onto the rebound for a goal. We’ve got a few who can take them, and they practice them a lot, but it’s a different task to execute them on the day, but it’s good to have a few of them who can hit a good free-kick.”
Chem Campbell continues his fine form by curling an unstoppable shot past Zych! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/ghF0zmWFp6
— Wolves Academy (@WolvesAcademy) March 18, 2022
On five league wins in a row
“Our performances have been excellent in the last few months and we’ve performed really well. We’ve had a really good balance with younger players and some more experienced ones at under-23 level.
“We’ve seen the likes of Justin [Hubner], Dexter [Lembikisa], Harry [Birtwistle] and Harvey [Griffiths], all second-year scholars at under-18 age, play alongside the likes of Yerson [Mosquera], coming back from injury, and TP, who was coming back from loan.
“We’ve had a nice blend of youth and experience, which has made a really good team. We looked quite experienced the other night with the way we started the game and controlled it throughout, but we had five under-18s on the pitch, so we might look like an old under-23 team, but we’re actually still very young, but I think that’s the good balance we have.”
On balancing youth and experience going forward
“If I’m honest, the under-23s is a reflection of the situation the club is in. Earlier in the season, we had a lot of injuries in the first-team, so there weren’t any senior players available to drop down from the first-team, because the younger ones had to make sure they were fit and ready for first-team games.
“At the moment, the first-team have got a relatively clean bill of health – or they did have before Friday – so one or two have been able to play regularly with us while training with the first-team; Luke’s needed football at different times, Yerson’s needed football, Toti’s needed football, Chiquinho’s needed football.
“Our job is all about getting these players ready for when they’re needed for the first-team. We have to remember that they are still young players and still in the under-23 age bracket. But going forward next season, we’ll have to see what the situation is with the first-team and who might be available for us, but we also like to play the younger players up earlier to give them a challenge and further their development.
“At the moment, we have a really good mix of young players and experience which is working well for everyone. Harvey, who is an under-18, has learned a lot by playing regularly alongside TP in the last few months, and it seems to work well when you have a mixture of both.”
Harry Birtwistle creates and scores our third of the night!
— Wolves Academy (@WolvesAcademy) March 18, 2022
🙌⚽️ pic.twitter.com/323xhTFm6e
On Joe Hodge’s return
“He’s had such a tough run with injuries, so we all had our fingers crossed that he would get back and then we had our fingers crossed that we hope he’d get through the first few training sessions and first few minutes unscathed.
“Making sure he’s ok was the main concern, and I’m sure he’d be the first to thank our medical and sports science staff who have been brilliant with him in getting him back playing. We’ve got to be careful with him but we’re really pleased he’s shown his quality in the short time that he’s been on the pitch so far.
“He’s been a really good addition to the group, a good addition to the team and he’s the right type of character for us. He’s a top guy, he shows exceptional leadership skills on and off the pitch and works his socks off on the training pitch and he’s taken that into the games. I’m looking forward to seeing more of him.”
