Preston North End U19s striker Felipe Rodriguez-Gentile’s late strike almost sparked the most dramatic of comebacks in his side’s 3-2 defeat against Bolton Wanderers.
After a frustrating game for himself and his teammates, the 16-year-old managed to the net in the 90th minute and Troy Tarry scored a screamer moments later, leaving the Lilywhites needing just one goal to salvage an unlikely draw.
Unfortunately, it never came but Rodriguez-Gentile still thought his side put on an impressive display.
“It was a positive performance,” he said, speaking to PNE.Com after the match.
“We played well and had a couple of chances, but unfortunately it wasn’t the result we wanted.”
The forward was one of the more experienced heads in a particularly youthful team put out to face the Trotters.
He recognised how difficult it will have been for a lot of his teammates to make the step up to U19s football but believed they played well and, perhaps with a bit more belief, it could have been a different outcome.
He said: “Sometimes, playing in a higher age group, you don’t do the things you usually do and when Troy scored that great goal, it showed that he was brave enough to take the shot on and maybe if other players took more risks, the result might have been different.
“I tried to get the boys up for it because it’s not easy to play at the U19 level when you’re 16, but I think they did well and were able to manage the pressure.”