The Baggies were knocked out of the FA Cup fourth round after their replay with Brighton but Moore thought the youngsters’ displays were a positive.
West Bromwich Albion manager Darren Moore has sought to look on the bright side and find positives after his charges were knocked out of the FA Cup at the hands of Brighton & Hove Albion in Wednesday night’s replay at The Hawthorns.
After a goalless first meeting in the fourth round at the Amex Stadium, it took a while for the deadlock to finally be broken as Baggies man Kyle Bartley hooked the ball in from behind the goal in the 77th minute.
With just eight minutes left of normal time, Florin Andone – who was lucky not to have been sent off in the first half after catching Sam Field with a flailing elbow – levelled for Brighton with a smart finish.
Neither side could be separated by the 90 minute mark and so it went to extra time, a period in which the visitors took and then extended their lead through Glenn Murray’s brace, winning 3-1 subsequently ending Albion’s cup involvement.
Moore opted to play several youngsters as 16-year-old Morgan Rogers stepped off the bench to make his first-team debut alongside fellow academy graduates Rayhaan Tulloch, Rekeem Harper and Sam Field, and at full time, the manager hoped the experience could be a springboard for their future careers.
“They gave everything tonight,” he told the official WBA website. “We’re disappointed to be knocked out but there were some real big performances from some of our younger players. I think they can feel proud of themselves tonight.
“Morgan made his debut tonight which is a really proud moment for him. That’s the first of hopefully many appearances that we as a football club will see of him. We hope he will grow and nurture into the player we know he can be.”
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