United Youth Boss Eric Kinder spoke to us about the 3-1 win over Port Vale:

"I asked a lot of the lads today, but that was done deliberately. I had the opportunity to call the game off, because League rules do state that playing on Thursday and Saturday is too soon for lads of this age group, but I felt that it was better that we went ahead with it.

The reasoning behind that is that I have their development in mind. If they go on to become professional footballers then they will find themselves in situations like this, where they will have to play two games in three days, and they may also have a similar scenario where they are having to overcome a disappointment like the one they had on Thursday night.

That was the main reason for playing, to be honest. I wanted them to answer the question about themselves, to see whether they had the desire that is needed to go out and play, on the Sheepmount, after such a big effort in front of a big crowd at Brunton Park. Would they be able to muster the enthusiasm - would they want to perform - or were they going to hide away and sulk?  To be fair to them, they answered every single one of those questions.

They controlled the game from start to finish, even though I will admit that we had a couple of lucky breaks, but that happens in Youth football. Port Vale had two or three chances, but we coped with that and we played well. 

I managed to rest four of our players and, again, some of the lads who don't usually get 90 minutes got that under their belts, which is invaluable.

Overall it has been a very good week for us. I was delighted with every one of them on Thursday. The way that they handled the situation they were in against a very good side was exceptional. To follow on from that and apply themselves today tells me a lot about my group of players. They've played in front of 30 people today, but they've raised their game and got the result despite that.

We went one up after 32 minutes when Ged Dalton latched on to a corner from the right. It bounced down in front of him and he smashed it in to the back of the net. On 55 minutes Woody played Gary Madine through, and he slotted it past the keeper. It wasn't an easy finish at all, but he made it look simple with the way that he took it.

Unfortunately we didn't really defend a long throw, when it came in to the box, and the ball broke to the edge of the area. Their lad took his shot and it got a huge deflection off one of his own lads, and their was nothing that Alex Mitchell could do about it. It was down to us switching off and not pressurising the ball. Matt Duffy then went on an overlap, sent a cross in and Andy Cook headed a terrific goal beyond the keeper to make it 3-1.

We could have scored more, and the whole performance was very satisfying for me.

Like I say, the easy option for me was to call this game off, and let the lads go home and lick their wounds from Thursday. I honestly felt, for their own development as much as anything else, that they would learn more, and I would learn more about them, if we went ahead and played. I really needed to know whether they could pick themselves up for a 'run of the mill' League game. I've thrown four personnel changes at them and, on top of that, I've fiddled with our formation, and they've risen to it.

I'm not saying that it went like clockwork, because it never will, but we showed that we had enough about us to a win a difficult game.

The focus has always been about Youth Development, at every stage, from the moment the lads arrived to start working with us, and that won't change now that we're out of the Cup. I will admit, you do consider your substitutions very carefully in the FA Cup, because the result does take on significance, and that's something you tend not to do on a Saturday. The League games are more about everybody getting their opportunity to develop.

An example of that is Steve Hindmarch. He came in and told me that he wasn't feeling too well, so he didn't play. If he'd said that on Thursday, he'd have played anyway, because I would have felt that we needed him then.

Other lads have been given the chance to start against Port Vale, and they have now given me real selection problems. That's all you can ask of them, that they give you these things to think about. On the flip side, there are lads who have played all the way through, and have got us to where we are in the League, and you have to ask yourself whether they deserve to lose their place. Those are the kinds of decision that you have to make at this stage of the season.

We have a Quarter Final next Saturday, and I now know that the lads who have been patient are there and ready to play if I ask them to. It's a competition that I have made no secret about the fact that I want to go as far as we can in. The FA Cup was for enjoyment, this is one that I would like us to really go for.

On top of that, I think we're right back in it in the League, as well, as we keep picking up those points. So, we can keep playing our football and I have the luxury of only needing to find five players for next season, to add to the group that we already have. Bringing those players in will not disrupt the squad that much. Yes, I do have to get that selection right if we wish to continue in the same manner as we are now, but we can also keep enjoying what we have at the moment.

Next week will be all about preparation for the Alliance Cup game. We'll go in to that one in exactly the same manner as we did for the big FA Cup games. This group of players is good enough to do things in that competition, and I don't mind putting pressure on the team in saying that. That's what the game is all about, stating your intentions and believing in yourselves.

Yes, it is Wigan, and they are an extremely good side, but this group of players can handle that. In my opinion, this game is a meeting of the best two sides in the League, and it would have been superb if it had been the Northern Final. It isn't, so we have to accept that, but we have to treat it like it is. If we can get past them then I would be really disappointed if we didn't then go all the way.

It's been easy for everyone to forget about the Alliance Cup with everything else that has been going on, but it's always been in the front of my mind. It can slip other people by because it gets played on a park pitch, and not at our stadium, but that's the way it's administered. The Final will be played at a League ground, so it's up to me to hammer home to the lads just how important and prestigious it still is. The glamour may be missing, but the significance isn't.

I honestly could not be more proud of the boys for what they have done so far this season. I walked off the pitch with Dan Wordsworth on Thursday, and I had a huge smile on my face. Dan was feeling low because he felt that he'd dropped a clanger, and I really felt for the lad. I had a quick word, and told him that he had nothing to feel down about. He has been superb for us, the cornerstone of our side, and he should have been walking off there feeling really proud of himself. It was the same for all of them. I'm delighted with them, and they should be with themselves.

The ending was exactly as I wanted it to be, if we got beat. We came up against a fantastic team, and I wanted to see that we did ourselves justice. We did more than that in the end. That's why I was so uptight about the Southend game, because I didn't want to go out to them after beating a team like Man United. I also didn't want to lose to Villa by seven goals, or anything like that, because we didn't deserve that. So, if it did have to end, it was in the right way for us. We went out with heads held very high. They're over the disappointment now, and I think they'll remember this achievement for a long, long time."

Team - Mitchell, Brown (Wordsworth), Aldred, Duffy, Blake, Dowson, Seaton, Wood (Tinnion), Lakeland, Dalton (Cook), Madine. Subs - Jamieson, Hindmarch.