U21 Report: Saints 4-2 Aston Villa

In an end-to-end first half, Dom Ballard scored a hat-trick whilst Omari Kellyman bagged a brace as five goals were shared with Saints leading at the break.

After a quieter second half, Tyler Dibling sealed the result with a stunning solo effort and finish to match.

Saints made four changes from their opening day defeat as summer signing Zach Awe made his debut at centre-back, joined by Dynel Simeu as a defensive pairing.

Jack Bycroft in goal and Kazeem Olaigbe in midfield were the other two changes with both sides looking to get their first points of the season on the board.

Zach Awe lined up for his debut. (Photo: Chris Moorhouse)

Saints’ youngsters controlled the tempo from the start and their first opportunity came through the debutant Awe, whose acrobatic effort just missed after a neat move and cross from Olaigbe on the right wing.

Striker Princewill Ehibhatiomhan was next to try his luck after being found by Cam Bragg’s chipped pass, but the forward blazed his shot over after some good initial control.

The visitors had to wait until the 17th minute for their first chance as Kellyman was released down the right wing but his shot from a tight angle flashed across the box.

Three minutes later, Tyler Dibling’s dangerous cross almost found a lunging Simeu who was pulled down in the box as the referee pointed to the penalty spot.

The ideal opportunity to open the scoring was duly taken by Ballard, who fired his powerful penalty into the bottom right corner.

Dom Ballard opened the scoring from the penalty spot.

Ballard almost had another quickfire brace - as he managed a week earlier against Newcastle - but his shot from the edge of the area was parried away by James Wright in the Villa goal.

Villa didn’t have to wait too long to level the scores, however, and they did so in fortuitous fashion when Bycroft’s clearance rebounded off Kellyman and into the back of the net.

The equaliser kick-started ten minutes of madness as the game suddenly became end-to-end, with Villa almost taking the lead but for a vital lunging block by a combination of Simeu and Awe to deny Chisom Afoka

In the 34th minute, it was Saints’ lead that was restored through Ballard once again; Dibling’s perfectly weighted pass released the clinical striker in the area and he powered his shot into the far corner.

Just two minutes later, though, the visitors were level again and Kellyman had a brace of his own, firing into the roof of the net at the far post after being picked out by Tommi O’Reilly’s cross.

The scoring wasn’t finished there as it took just a further three minutes for Saints to get back in front, in the 39th minute. Ballard notched his second hat-trick in consecutive games, pouncing on Wright’s pass and passing the ball into the net for his simplest finish of the game.

Ballard celebrates scoring another hat-trick.

There was almost a sensational fourth goal for Ballard in the first half, just a minute after his third, as an effort from inside the area trickled towards goal but was cleared off the line.

With the breathless encounter nearing the break, Afoka came close for the visitors as his one-on-one chance was saved by Bycroft before Dibling tried a curling shot from range that was tipped behind.

The second half, by comparison, was less relentless than the first had ended, but Villa did almost find their third equaliser in the opening stages through Teddy Rowe.

The visitors’ threatening winger, Kellyman, dispossessed Simeu in the area but the ball fell to Rowe who blazed over from six yards out.

Just before the hour mark, Dibling could have extended Saints’ lead after he was picked out by Ehibhatiomhan’s cross, but his lunging header flew over the crossbar.

After an extended stoppage in play, which saw Simeu unfortunately forced off through injury, one of Saints’ substitutes, Diamond Edwards, injected some new life into the encounter.

The tricky midfielder had an effort across goal from the right wing saved, before carrying the ball from just inside Villa’s half and seeing his shot from the edge of the area deflected.

Tyler Dibling was a threat throughout the game before his deserved goal.

Up the other end, Kellyman was again denied a hat-trick of his own with a shot from inside the box that was cleared off the line by another second half introduction, Jem Hewlett.

In the closing stages, Alex Stepien-Iwumene tried his luck with an audacious attempt from just inside the Aston Villa half after winning back possession but his chance drifted wide.

Villa’s closest chance for an equaliser came from Travis Patterson’s shot from the edge of the box, but that was comfortably held by Bycroft in goal.

Then, during eight minutes of stoppage time, Saints could breathe a sigh of relief as Dibling sealed the result with an impressive solo effort.

The winger, who ran himself all over the pitch during the game, picked up the ball inside Villa’s half and drove towards the area before cutting inside and deservedly finding the bottom corner with a low shot.

Saints: Bycroft, Abu, Simeu (Davis 65), Awe (Hewlett 46), Meghoma, Bragg, Dibling, Finnigan (Stepien-Iwumene 63), Ballard (c) (Edwards 61), Olaigbe, Ehibhatiomhan.

Subs not used: Mohamed.

Goals: Ballard 20, 34, 39, Dibling 90+3.

Yellow cards: Dibling 46, Meghoma 88.

Aston Villa: Wright, Rowe, Revan (Moore 73), Feeney, A. O’Reilly (Smith 82), Barnes, Kellyman Ealing (73), Rowe (Patterson 73), Afoka, T. O’Reilly [c], Richards.

Subs not used: Proctor.

Goals: Kellyman 26, 36.

Yellow cards: O’Reilly 17, Feeney 19, Patterson 84.