Under-21s target two trophies in a week

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Head coach Shannon Ruth reflects on Friday's semi-final win over Spurs and looks ahead to a big week.

Luke Nicoli

2026-05-09T10:40+01:00

Shannon Ruth's under-21s have the opportunity to win two trophies this season. 📷Simon Roe

Albion U21 head coach Shannon Ruth was delighted with the application of his players as they beat Tottenham Hotspur to reach the Premier League 2 Play-Off Final.

The Seagulls were worthy 3-1 winners at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, thanks to goals from Noel Atom, Shane Nti and Kofi Shaw, and they now face Manchester United in the showpiece final.

“I thought it was a hard-fought win, but a deserved one,” said Ruth. “Tottenham are a good side and I knew we would need to show real togetherness to get the result we wanted. Some of the defending was outstanding – the communication and the big tackles which we celebrated winning. And when we scored, we went again, which was really pleasing.

“We could have put the game to bed sooner, having missed a couple of good chances in the first half, but overall it was a performance that had a bit of everything. It had some nice play, some graft and fight too. What we also did was outrun the opposition. There were a lot of players out there who have not played a lot of football but we did not stop running and their commitment to the cause saw them through.”

Goalscorer Kofi Shaw goes past two Spurs' defender during Friday's 3-1 win. 📷Simon Roe

The rules of the competition dictate that the home side must play at their first-team stadium at the semi-final stage, hence the fixture being staged at Spurs' state-of-the-art 62,000 arena in north London. It could have been a daunting experience, but Ruth's young charges thrived in the environment.

“I was delighted that the occasion didn't get the better of us,” Ruth added. “It's an incredible stadium but, respectfully, I didn't want to make a thing of it. Inside our changing room we put up Brighton crests everywhere just to give us some familiarity because we always aim to get to a place where consistency is key, no matter the venue, opponent or the occasion. Still, I'm sure it was an incredible experience for them and one that whets the appetite for their ambitions moving forward.”

The group now have the chance to make it a fantastic finale to the season with both this final and the Sussex Senior Cup Final against Three Bridges on Wednesday next week.

“In the changing room I've just asked them what makes getting to a final worth it, and they all replied 'winning it'. When you retire, you think about the memories you've made, the teammates you've had and how you won together, so it would really top our season off to win these games. For us as an U21s group we haven't won a trophy for a while so we're super hungry to do so.”