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Academy Notes: Dylan Gavin

Charlton Athletic U23’s Dylan Gavin spoke to Valley Gold for Academy Notes after the 3-2 defeat at Peterborough United.

The striker who is currently on loan at Billericay Town until the end of the season hails from Athlone, Co. Westmeath and has had a love of sport from a very young age. Dylan signed for Charlton aged 16 and found it touch to settle in London, but with support from his family, slowly adapted to the new environment, surroundings and the full-time training regime – something he had not experienced back home.

His love for scoring goals is clear to see and lists his main strengths as his big physical presence in leading from the front, his strength and power which comes in handy against defenders, and his powerful shot added with his aerial ability. Speaking after the 3-2 defeat, he told Valley Gold:

“This probably wasn’t our best performance, but everyone put in a shift. We all tried our best, but the result doesn’t lie – We must be honest with each other and hold our hands up for the first-half performance.

“The first half was shaped from the very first minute. There was a big tackle from their Captain on Tyreece Campbell. He was fortunate to only see yellow, but this set the tone for the game. We started slowly. They dominated us on the turnover, capitalising on our mistakes. They counter pressed us aggressively and we didn’t really have that much of a threat. We were too safe with the ball and rarely affected their backline.

“Two mistakes were punished early on to give them a two-goal advantage. The first came from a free-kick after we conceded possession carelessly in our defensive third. The second came from a counterattack after another cheap turnover proved costly. We conceded a third five minutes before the break to make our task almost impossible heading in at the interval.

“The second half was better. We applied greater pressure and played more passes in their half, creating more chances. We began to move them around and disturb their shape. We got a goal back courtesy of Daniel Kanu, who pounced on a loose ball in the penalty area after Lucas Ness saw his headed effort come back off the post.

“We continued to plug away, and I managed to score from close range after a well-worked team goal, with big contributions made by Jeremy Santos & Harris O’ Connor who provided the assist. We pushed until the last minute but couldn’t find the equaliser leaving the result 3-2 to Peterborough.

We remain 4th in the League Table with two games in hand on those ahead of us. We’re not in the best of form. We haven’t won in five games, so all of us know a big effort is needed to turn this corner.”

Valley Gold enables supporters to play a pivotal role in the future of Charlton Athletic by helping the club to unearth talented footballers through its youth system. Valley Gold is entirely supporter-funded, with membership costing £120 per year. As a member of Valley Gold, you will also have the opportunity to scoop up to £5,000 in regular cash prizes. To learn more about the scheme or to become a Valley Gold member, please click here.