Premier League 2

West Bromwich Albion U21 4 (Heard 8’, Maja 19’, 25’; Whitwell 89’)

Leeds United U21 2 (Debayo 75’, Chambers 79’)

West Brom: Foster (GK), Williams, Nelson, Richards (Mfuamba 72’), Hall, Trialist A (Trialist B 46’), Bostock, Whitwell, Maja (Sule 80’), Heard (Higgins 73’), Malcolm. Sub not used: Brady (GK).

Leeds: Mahady (GK), Moore (C), Ferguson (Vincent 88’), Coleman, Monteiro, Debayo, Snowdon, Chadwick, Thomas, Chambers, Allen (Richards 65’). Subs not used: van den Heuvel (GK), Toulson, Cresswell.

Referee: Gary Parsons

Booked: Whitwell (West Brom) Coleman, Chadwick (Leeds)

Venue: The Hawthorns

Leeds United Under-21s tasted defeat on their final Premier League 2 outing of the season, despite a spirited second half showing from the Whites seeing James Debayo and Sam Chambers get on the scoresheet against West Bromwich Albion Under-21s.

Scott Gardner’s side pressed intently from the off, with a loose pass almost seeing forward Luca Thomas charge down Brad Foster’s rushed clearance in the Baggies goal, with the keeper hacking away just before the in-form forward could pounce.

That proved to be vital for Albion as they took the lead shortly afterwards on the break, with attacking midfielder Fenton Heard on hand to sweep home into the far corner beyond the despairing dive of Rory Mahady, after good build up play from Josh Maja.

The Whites came within inches of an equaliser moments after the restart, when Joe Snowdon slid a superb low ball into the box which Thomas met, but at full stretch the forward saw his effort cannon off the underside of the bar and away from danger.

Jovan Malcolm, whose influence was beginning to grow down the right, then went close to adding a second for his side on the counter, dragging wide of the far post from close-range.

Maja extended Albion's lead after 19 minutes, latching onto a loose ball and darting into the area before firing beyond Mahady into the back of the net.

Despite the setback, United responded brightly as they looked to get back into things, with desperate defending from the hosts first to block an effort from Snowdon after an incisive pass from Kris Moore, with Charlie Allen and Chambers then seeing shots charged down by Baggies shirts.

As Leeds searched for a goal of their own the game began to grow more open, with Mahady on hand to make a stunning save to deny Malcolm from close range, after the winger met Alex Williams' low cross from the right. 

West Brom weren’t to be denied a third however when Maja reacted well to bundle home a rebound after Harry Whitwell had initially brought a fine save from the Scottish keeper.

HALF TIME: West Bromwich Albion U21 3-0 Leeds United U21

The Whites started with a sense of urgency after the break and Snowdon went close, cutting in-field from the right flank and lashing a left-footed strike over the bar from the edge of the area.

Chambers was beginning to find more space and use his pace to drive his side forward as they searched for a lifeline, first wriggling free from his marker to find Thomas who forced Foster into a good diving save from distance.

With 15 minutes to go, Leeds got on the scoresheet when Debayo glanced Coleman's dangerous cross into the back of the net.

Confusion between Foster and Reece Hall saw no one in a Baggies shirt react, with the defender on hand to take advantage and reduce the deficit.

Within minutes, United had a second when Chambers drove a fierce strike into the top corner, finding space down the right after Rhys Chadwick recycled possession and found the midfielder to drill past Foster and give Gardner’s side hope.

As the Whites piled bodies forward in search of a late equaliser, the hosts grabbed a fourth on the break to seal proceedings when Whitwell found the bottom corner with a powerful low shot from distance.

Leeds dominated possession as they looked for a response, but were unable to create any clear-cut openings before referee Gary Parsons brought their Premier League 2 campaign to a close.

FULL TIME: West Bromwich Albion U21 4-2 Leeds United U21