England 4-1 Georgia

Martin Hunter's England Under-19 team opened their account in the UEFA Championship Mini-Qualifying Tournament with an emphatic 4-1 victory over Georgia at Bootham Crescent on Wednesday night.

Hunter named a strong side for what was a crucial qualification game and the early signs were promising. With Crewe Alexandra centre forward Dean Ashton imposing his strong physical presence over the visitors, England pushed hard for an early strike, coming closest on 22 minutes when Lionel Morgan of Wimbledon got on the end of a teasing Justin Hoyte cross but saw his effort come back off the crossbar.

England continued to surge forward and were almost given a spectacular lead by Ashton on 26 minutes. His left-foot strike from the edge of the area was a magnificent example of power and technique which looked bound for the corner of the net until late movement in the air saw it angle just the wrong side of the post.

However, with Justin Hoyte and Glen Johnson looking particularly impressive in a solid-looking England defence, there seemed little danger at the other end.

Little danger, that is, until Georgia stunned England by taking the lead after 43 minutes. Modebadze's free close-range header gave his side a half-time lead to the shock of the home crowd but to the obvious delight of the visitors.

An interval followed in which questions were asked but, within as little as 8 minutes of the re-start, England had provided all of the answers.

First, on 49 minutes, captain Jermaine Jenas stole in at the near post to prod home Gary O'Neil's wonderfully flighted free-kick from the left. Then, on 53 minutes, Newcastle United's Michael Chopra was in the right place at the right time to thump home a loose ball following a goalmouth scramble that had ensued after Lionel Morgan's incisive run and cross down the left.

Once in front, England continued to attack powerfully in search of more goals. They were not to be disappointed as the weaving runs of Chopra proved too much for the Georgian defence which not once but twice found the only way to stop the Newcastle flyer was to bring him down in the area.

On each occasion Dean Ashton was the grateful recipient. The Crewe man showed little sign of nerves with his spot-kicks, blasting the first into the left hand corner before going slightly better to find the top-corner with his second and England's fourth of the night on 77 minutes.

From a position of uncertainty, England had recovered to record the most convincing of victories. If they are able to turn in a similar performance against Hungary at Barnsley on Sunday, they will have every chance of making their way through to the next round of qualification against Lithuania in March next year.

England: Grant, Hoyte, Hylton, Johnson, Clarke, O'Neil, Cooke (Bowditch), Jenas, Chopra, Morgan (Thomas), Ashton (Moore)

England Goals: Jenas, Chopra, Ashton 2

Lithuania Goals: Modebadze