Right on cue
Monday, 19 July, 2010
Frank Nouble pleased with the timing of his first England goals.
Nicholas Veevers in Caen
It was a happy day for Frank Nouble on Sunday, as his first goals in an England shirt set the Young Lions on their way to an opening game victory in the European U19 Championship Finals in France.
The first game in any international Final competition is traditionally tough and this was no different, especially on a hot day in pre-season but two first half goals from the West Ham United hitman put Noel Blake’s side in a commanding position at the break before Austria launched something of a second half comeback.
England never relented though and Nouble believes this game can be used as something of a launchpad for the rest of the competition.
“I think we did well in the first half, but it is still pre-season for us and in terms of gelling, we can only get better during the tournament,” he said after the game.
“I thought Austria were a good technical side, and whilst we weren’t at our best today, it’s tournament football and we won so we can hopefully show more of our qualities in the games to come.”
After playing an important role in helping the U19s to qualify for the last eight of this season’s competition without finding the net, the Lewisham-born striker was delighted to break his duck in such a vital game too.
“I think I’ve done quite well whenever I’ve been with the U19s without scoring, so the timing for my first goals has been quite good and hopefully we can push on from here,” he added.
“It was two goals with my left peg as well, so I’m pleased with that as I’ve been training a lot on the left and it came off. I just had a go and it went well for me today.”
Nouble also revealed that the squad have been generally aware of the attention that has been focused on this competition over the last week and how everyone involved is hoping to use that increased exposure to show just what they can do and maybe press on to the next level at both club and international level.
“We’re just trying to focus on the tournament here and we want to concentrate on what we do first,” he explained.
“We know that we’re a good side and we want to keep working to reach our targets and not what everyone else is talking about.
“The boys know that if they play well here, then there is always the chance to play for the Under-21s in the next tournament but that all comes down to our performance and attitude here.
“Hopefully doors will open for any of us to push on, but that has always been the case in any country you look at.
“International football is important, and that’s why we’re all here and we want to win this tournament.”