U21s Report & Highlights: Young Eagles bounce back with win over Blackburn

Summary:

• Darren Powell makes three changes to the side that suffered defeat to Sunderland, including first-team midfielder Cheick Doucouré – his first appearance in over a year.
• 1 – GOAL: Zach Marsh drives towards the area, lays off Seb Williams, who forces the diving parry, before Marsh is alert to convert the follow-up.
• 6: Lorenze Mullarky-Matthews drives low and hard across the face of goal for Frank Vare to strike first-time and Harry Lee to make a fine save.
• 19 - SO CLOSE: Joe Gibbard's long throw is flicked on by the head of King as Williams sees his close-range volley brilliantly denied by a diving Khan.
• 20 – SO CLOSE: Jemiah Umolu sees his diving header pushed round the post by Khan.
• 21 - GOAL: George King converts Rio Cardines' pull-back to double our lead!
• 33 - SO CLOSE: Rio Cardines whips the free-kick over the wall and Khan pulls off a brilliant save to tip it over the bar!
• 43: Umolu flashes the ball across the face of goal, but nobody in red and blue can turn it home.
• 45: Tyler Whyte makes a crucial intervention on the line to prevent Blackburn halving the deficit on the stroke of half-time.
• HT: Blackburn Rovers 0-2 Palace
• 45: Umolu attempts to round the ‘keeper, before being flagged offside.
• 52: The ball almost falls kindly on the half-volley from King a few yards out.
• 60: Great block from Kaden Rodney to deny the fizzed effort!
• 67: Williams drives towards goal and sees his effort denied by the outstretched boot of the defender.
• 70: Palace are putting together some lovely patterns of play, but missing that killer pass!
• 80: Valentine Joseph rises highest in the box but somehow fails to make contact with the inswinging corner.
• 82: Joseph Boggan's scuffed effort from the pull-back is kept out expertly by Lee.
• 85: Asher Agbinone's long range strike drifts wide.
• Four minutes additional time is indicated.
• 90 (+4) - GOAL: Isaac Dunn halves the deficit for Blackburn.
• FT: Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Palace

Palace headed into the contest looking to bounce back from consecutive defeats in Premier League 2.

The young Eagles had suffered a narrow 1–0 loss to Sunderland on Monday evening at the VBS Community Stadium, following a 3–0 defeat away to West Ham United at Rush Green Training Ground.

Blackburn Rovers arrived for Friday’s clash sitting 27th in the Premier League 2 table, with 11 points from 14 matches – three fewer than the division’s maximum played.

With games in hand on several sides around them, the situation was not quite as bleak as it first appeared, with just six points separating Rovers from 20th-placed Nottingham Forest.

Darren Powell made three changes to the side that had lost to Sunderland. Zack Henry was handed his first Under-21s start of the 2025/26 campaign in place of Dylan Reid, while first-team midfielder Cheick Doucouré came in for Matteo Dashi. Zach Marsh also returned from injury, replacing Rylan Brownlie in the XI.

It was a blistering start from Powell’s side, who took the lead inside 30 seconds through Marsh.

The forward surged towards the penalty area before laying the ball off to the onrushing Seb Williams, whose effort forced a diving parry from Adam Khan.

Marsh reacted quickest to the rebound, calmly converting from close range to give Palace the perfect start – back in the side and back among the goals for Marshy.

Despite Palace’s territorial dominance and control of possession, the hosts issued a warning a few minutes later. Adam Mullarky-Matthews drove a low ball across the face of goal for Frank Vare to meet first-time, but Harry Lee reacted well to make a fine save low to his right.

There was a heart-in-mouth moment when Henry caught a Blackburn attacker on the right flank as he drove towards the penalty area. Fortunately for Palace, appeals for a penalty were waved away, with the referee instead awarding a free-kick.

Rovers then enjoyed a brief spell of attacking pressure, but by the 20-minute mark Palace had reasserted their ascendancy.

Joe Gibbard launched a long throw into the box which George King flicked on, allowing Williams to volley goalwards from close range. Adam Khan produced a superb save to deny him before scrambling to claw the ball away from Jemiah Umolu, who was closing in on the rebound.

Moments later, Gibbard delivered a dangerous set-piece and Umolu’s diving header forced another fine stop from Khan, who tipped the effort around the post.

Palace’s pressure eventually told, and their persistence was rewarded when King doubled the lead. Kaden Rodney lifted the ball wide to Rio Cardines, whose cut-back found King in space, and the forward curled a first-time effort into the far corner.

Approaching the closing stages of the half, Harry Lee continued to play his part between the sticks, producing an excellent save to push away a curling free-kick that was heading towards the far post.

Cardines cleverly nearly caught out Khan from a left channel free-kick he whipped over the wall, but the Pakistan national reacted well to acrobatically tip it over the bar.

On the stroke of half-time, Palace pushed to extend their advantage, but nobody in red and blue could apply the finishing touch to Umolu’s arrowed delivery across the face of goal.

At the other end there was a scare, as Tyler Whyte made a crucial intervention on the line to deny what looked a certain goal – he’s making a habit of that! We headed into the break with a well-deserved two-goal lead.

In similar fashion to the opening 45 minutes, Palace almost struck immediately after the restart when Umolu was sent racing clear and looked set to round the 'keeper, only for the offside flag to halt the move.

A few minutes later, a pinball-like scramble inside the box saw the ball nearly drop kindly for King on the half-volley just a few yards from goal, but Blackburn managed to hack clear.

The contest had developed into a scrappy, cagey affair, with neither side able to establish sustained control.

Just past the hour mark, Osman Kamara drove down the left channel and cut the ball back to Max Davies on the byline, but Kaden Rodney produced an excellent block to ensure Lee was not called into action.

Midway through the half, the pendulum began to swing back in Palace’s favour as they started to apply sustained pressure, but the likes of substitute Rylan Brownlie and Williams were unable to find a way through the hosts’ defence.

Williams drove towards goal and struck an effort that cannoned off a defender’s outstretched boot.

Matteo Dashi then replaced Henry on 70 minutes, and Palace continued to grow in confidence, putting together some lovely passages of play which almost saw Rodney slipped in behind for a one-on-one opportunity.

Entering the final third of the contest, Blackburn searched for a route back into the game and used all four of their outfield substitutes in a bid to halve the deficit. Although they did not seriously test Lee, that was largely down to Palace’s disciplined defending and tireless work off the ball.

Valentine Joseph had a huge opportunity on 80 minutes, rising highest in the box but somehow failing to make contact with the inswinging corner.

In the dying embers, Rovers came agonisingly close to finding a leveller when Joseph Boggan met a pull-back inside the box, but fortunately scuffed his effort and Lee reacted sharply to keep it out, preventing a nervy finale.

The final opportunity before stoppage time fell to substitute Asher Agbinone, whose long-range effort drifted wide.

In the four minutes of added time, Blackburn finally halved the deficit as Issac Dunn’s free-kick from the right curled through the wall and sneaked past an unsighted Lee at his near post.

The result lifts us to 12th in Premier League 2, level on 24 points with Leicester City. It also gives us a five-point cushion over Stoke City at the top of the cross-cut play-offs and keeps us firmly inside the crucial top-16.

With four games remaining to secure a place in the elimination play-offs, we certainly have a shot at being crowned overall champions.

Palace: Lee, Whyte, Henry (Dashi, 72’), Rodney, King, Cardines, Gibbard, Marsh (Brownlie, 58’), Williams, Umolu (Agbinone, 83), Doucoure (Reid, 45’).

Subs not used: Hill.

Blackburn Rovers: Khan, Mullarky-Matthews (Namisi, 62’), Pates (Effa, 62’), Pratt (Kelley-Quinn, 62’), Davies, Dunn, Doherty (Joseph, 77’), Boggan, Garrett, Kamara.

Subs not used:  Wolsoncroft.