WRYLEY JUNIORS 0-5 TELFORD TOWN U15s

18/08/2026 - 18:30 - Pre-Season Match

With the squad now settled for the season, Telford Town Under 15s started their preparations for the upcoming campaign with a tough away fixture against Wryley Juniors, who were brimming with confidence after winning their league last season.

For Telford, the result wasn't the main focus. The friendly was an opportunity to bed in new signings Caiden Williams and Charlie Dalton, introduce them to the Telford way of playing, and experiment with different formations and partnerships with one eye firmly on the season ahead.

Both new players add something different to the squad. Caiden brings huge amounts of energy to the midfield, a real dynamo who is happy to press, tackle and carry the ball forward, while Charlie brings versatility and, in particular, devastating pace which gives Telford another option going forward.

There was also a new face on the touchline with Nick Corbishley joining the Telford coaching staff, bringing with him many years of playing experience across a range of positions and levels.

And it is a significant step this season. Full-size pitches, full-size goals and now 40-minute halves mean there will be different physical and tactical demands on the players.

With only Zami and Xavi missing, Telford had a strong squad available and started with their preferred 3-5-2 formation, aiming as always to utilise the width and pace on the wings whilst locking down the middle of the pitch.

Luke in goal.

Back three of Evan, Brad and George.

Ethan holding midfield behind Caiden and Fin.

Archie and Fin W as wing-backs.

Jacob and Harv playing as the front two.

Josh, Kayden, Will, Bayley and, when he eventually rocked up, Charlie on the bench. That's a fine, Charlie...

Subs would be rolling on and off throughout.

The pitch, like most of the country at the moment, resembled a desert, although thankfully for once it wasn't baking hot.

Highlights can be seen here - or watch the full match here.

FIRST HALF

Telford hit the ground running and took the game straight to Wryley.

The midfield were a bundle of energy and gave their opponents no time on the ball. Time and again Telford either won possession back or forced a mistake, and when they did they turned defence into attack quickly, releasing Archie, Harv, Fin W and Jacob with passes through the lines.

Caiden settled immediately into the midfield, bringing exactly the energy expected of him, pressing relentlessly and looking completely at home alongside Fin and Ethan.

When the forward pass wasn't on, Telford maintained possession well, playing some lovely intricate passing moves that looked as though they had come straight from the training ground.

At the other end, the back three looked composed on the ball. Despite Wryley going man-for-man against them with a front three, Ethan - and then Kayden when he came on - did their jobs superbly, shielding the defence and breaking up attacks before they could develop.

Telford being in control brought its own problems. Wryley dropped deeper and deeper, reducing the space available in the final third. They had a large - big lads! - back four, and despite Telford's dominance they did a good job of restricting them largely to efforts from distance.

With it being a friendly, hydration breaks were in place and Telford made changes at the first break. Josh replaced Fin W and switched sides with Archie, Kayden replaced Ethan and Bayley replaced Jacob.

The formation stayed the same and, pleasingly for the coaching staff, so did Telford's play.

Telford finally got the reward their performance deserved after 29 minutes, with the opening goal coming from the penalty spot.

Telford pressure earned a corner and, as the ball was delivered, Josh found space at the front post. In their haste to recover, Wryley shoved him to the ground and the referee pointed straight to the spot.

Brad stepped up and made no mistake, dispatching the penalty and giving the keeper no chance.

Wryley Juniors 0-1 Telford

Wryley managed their first shot on target with just a couple of minutes left in the half as they finally broke through the Telford line, but Luke was smartly off his line and made a good save with his feet.

It would have been harsh on Telford to concede after controlling the half and they went into the break with their one-goal advantage intact.

HALF TIME - WRYLEY JUNIORS 0-1 TELFORD

The half-time message was simple: keep doing the same.

There were clear signs that what Telford had been focusing on in training was working, and more importantly it was evident that the players were actively trying to take those ideas into the match.

There was no reason to change the formation. What Telford were implementing was working, so let Wryley react to them.

Personnel did change though. Will went in goal, Charlie came on to replace Archie, Ethan replaced Caiden and Jacob replaced Harv.

For Charlie it was a first opportunity to show what he could bring to the side, with his pace immediately giving Wryley something different to think about.

SECOND HALF

More of the same from Telford is probably the easiest way to describe the start of the second half.

The personnel had changed but the intensity, if anything, had increased. Telford hunted the ball down and pressed as a team, winning possession back all over the pitch.

Now Wryley were chasing the game and beginning to push further forward, which in turn created more space for Telford to exploit with their pace and power in behind the back line.

Ten minutes into the second half, with 50 minutes on the clock, Telford doubled their lead.

Brad and Evan snuffed out a Wryley attack before Evan calmly advanced down the right. He switched the play to Josh on the left, who skipped past his man and buried his shot across the keeper.

Wryley Juniors 0-2 Telford

Wryley then tested Will from long range, but he showed good composure to gather the ball cleanly.

Telford thought they had a third soon afterwards, Fin providing the finish following good work from Bayley. Unfortunately, the referee had blown his whistle for a head injury to a Wryley player.

You can make your own mind up when watching the video whether he'd blown before Fin's shot... :-)

The second-half drinks break arrived and, with one eye on the season ahead, Telford switched to a new and unfamiliar formation - 4-3-3.

Will in goal.

Back four of Fin W, Brad, Ethan and George.

Midfield three of Jacob, Caiden and Kayden.

Front three of Josh, Harv and Bayley.

The formation may have changed but, once again, Telford dealt with the adjustment superbly. They continued to press and hunt the ball down as a unit and simply refused to give Wryley any time to settle in possession.

For the coaching staff, that adaptability was perhaps as pleasing as anything else on the night. Players were being asked to operate in different positions and different systems, but the principles remained the same.

On 70 minutes Telford added a third.

Kayden was brought down around 26 yards from goal as he carried the ball forward and Bayley stepped up to take the resulting free kick.

He opened his account for the season in some style, sending the ball over the wall and just inside the post to the goalkeeper's left.

Wryley Juniors 0-3 Telford

Still with one eye on the season ahead, and with a desire to give players exposure to different defensive roles, Telford made further changes.

Josh dropped to left-back, Archie joined the front three and Fin moved into the centre of defence replacing George.

On 75 minutes Bayley grabbed his second and Telford's fourth.

Harv and Caiden combined with the ball just inside their own half before Harv split the Wryley defence with a pass for Bayley to run onto. The keeper managed to get a hand to his shot but couldn't do enough to keep it out.

Wryley Juniors 0-4 Telford

Three minutes later Harv added a fifth.

Telford recycled possession following a corner and Bayley turned provider, feeding Harv clean through on goal. Harv made no mistake, calmly slotting the ball underneath the Wryley keeper.

Wryley Juniors 0-5 Telford

The remainder of the match played out without further incident.

FULL TIME - WRYLEY JUNIORS 0-5 TELFORD TOWN

An excellent performance from Telford all round.

There was no Man of the Match with it being pre-season, and in truth it would have been difficult to single out any one performance anyway.

From back to front Telford dominated, but importantly they dominated as a team.

The two new additions settled quickly. Caiden brought energy and bite to the midfield and looked comfortable in Telford's pressing game, while Charlie's pace gives the team another attacking weapon and something very different for opposition defenders to deal with.

Just as pleasing was the way the players adapted to changes in personnel, positions and formation without changing the way the team wanted to play. Whether it was 3-5-2 or 4-3-3, the pressing, work rate and willingness to play football remained.

Only 11 can start, but increasingly football is a 16-man game, and every one of the 16 lads involved played their part.

The result ultimately means very little in pre-season, but the performance showed plenty of encouraging signs that the work being done on the training pitch is transferring into matches.

Next up could well be Telford's final pre-season fixture and they go on the road again, this time travelling to Baschurch for another tough test against another league-winning side - this time from the Shrewsbury League.