- Blackburn 6 Albion 0
Albion under-23s were on the end of a heavy defeat against a strong Blackburn Rovers on Friday night.
Albion keeper James Beadle could do little when Rovers forward Jack Vale smartly lifted the ball over the keeper to put his team in the lead after just three minutes.
The 17-year-old, who was making his Premier League 2 debut for Albion, was called into action again when he smartly spread himself to deny Luke Brennan from a tight angle, but there was little he could do as the hosts added a second when skipper Ashley Phillips hammered low through a crowd after Albion failed to clear their lines.
Further misery was heaped onto the visitors as Bradley Dack made it 3-0 before the 30-minute mark with a first-time finish into the bottom corner.
There was still time for Vale to add his second before the interval, with a looping header into the top left corner.
Albion were presented with a good opportunity early in the second half as Rovers keeper Jordan Eastham came racing off his line to clear, only to make a mess of his clearance and find himself in no man’s land. Ayo Tanimowo looked to punish him with a strike from long range, but the effort lacked power and the home side averted the danger.
Blackburn added a fifth after 55 minutes, as Vale claimed the match ball with his third of the game; bursting through the Albion defence and rolling the ball past Beadle to make it 5-0, before Brennan added another to make it six.
Crofts’ team now have a fortnight’s wait until their next match when they face Leeds, as they look to put a rare poor performance behind them.
Albion line-up: Beadle, Nilsson, Turns, Roberts, Furlong, Tanimowo (Moran 64), Hinchy (Chouchane 79), Spong, Miller, Leonard, Wilson (Ifill 46).
Unused subs: Bull, Jackson.