SEVEN UP FOR BOYS AS LEEDS ARE OUTCLASSED

Preparations for the league season continued on Saturday when Sunderland Boys entertained Leeds Primary Schoolboys in a friendly at Nissan.

The boys were keen to build on their promising opening performances in Leeds a week before, although they were missing Aidan Meagan who was away on holiday and Jude Cogdon, who was nursing an injury.

The lads entered the game looking to create more momentum going into their opening test of the season in the Peter Dunn Trophy in Darlington tomorrow.

Sunderland started the game very well and looked dangerous going forward, taking an early lead when a cross from the right found Bailey Corner at the edge of the Leeds area.

He shifted the ball out of his feet before firing across the Leeds keeper and into the far corner for his fourth goal of the season.

Despite this promising start, Leeds equalised when captain Nathan Snowball was penalised for a push in the box and the Leeds player dispatched the penalty confidently past Finley Robertson in the home goal.

The remainder of the half produced a great advert for district football with the game flowing from one end to the other.

Shortly before half time, the boys regained the lead when a far-post corner routine from Ryly Deehan found the head of the excellent Matthew Taylor, who powered home a header from just inside the six yard box.

If the first half had been a tight affair, Sunderland simply ran away with the game in the second half.

Lucas Taylor opened his account for the season when he converted a square pass from Corner, who then made it 4-1 when he fired home from close range after the ball had ricocheted around the Leeds area.

Great work from Matthew Taylor saw him win the ball on the half-way line before driving forward and squaring a pass to Lucas Taylor who played a through ball to Deehan. He confidently fired past the onrushing keeper for this third goal of the season.

Despite being well on top by this stage, the boys did receive a scare when a shot from the edge of the area was deflected over Robertson’s head only to bounce back off the crossbar before being scrambled to safety.

Most of the action, however, was taking place in the Leeds area and Matthew Taylor scored his second goal of the game when he fired home after the keeper had spilled a Jesse Nelson shot.

His namesake Lucas completed the scoring when he fired home the rebound after a shot from Evan Clark clattered off the crossbar.

Lucas then missed the chance to complete his hattrick when he raced free from the halfway line but ran out of pitch after rounding the Leeds keeper.

The referee then blew the final whistle to confirm a well-deserved 7-1 victory.