SWINDON Town U18s boss Alan McLoughlin was delighted with the grit shown by his youngsters as they picked up a 1-0 win over local rivals Oxford United.

The last time the two teams met, McLoughlin’s side had to settle with a point after recording a 3-3 draw.

This time around, Sol Pryce’s goal was all Swindon needed to register the win, much to the delight of the former Town midfielder.

“Last time we played them we dominated the game and conceded a couple of sloppy goals,” said McLoughlin.

“I was happy, in terms of the way the players performed. We were fairly inexperienced because we had seven first-years playing.

“I’m very pleased with the determination, the focus and the team effort.

“Oxford started more brightly than we did, we had good shape and retained the ball well, but didn’t create too many opportunities in the final third.

“Our end ball and final product was a little bit lacking. It was a derby game, there were some robust challenges going in and we just stayed in the game.

“Eventually, you find a way through. I made some substitutions and they made an impact, we found a decent ball in the box, it was half a mistake from their goalkeeper but it was good anticipation from Sol.”

Last season, Town’s youngsters suffered defeat at the hands of their local rivals, but this year the club have taken four points off of them.

With the win also taking his side up to second in the Youth Alliance League, McLoughlin says there are plenty of positives for him and his players to take from the game.

“Overall, to be unbeaten against your local rivals is decent, and we are happy with that,” he added.

“We did well to compete with the physical gap between the two sides - they probably had a bit more know how.

“I’m pleased to get three points, we scored late on but they still came forward and had a chance to score in the last few minutes of the game.

“Our goalkeeper, Archie Matthews, made a great save in a one against one situation to keep them out, so the players are delighted.”