Sahil Bashir ensured Albion under-18s finished their campaign with five consecutive victories after he netted a hat-trick in a 6-2 drubbing of Norwich on Saturday.
Albion had already confirmed seventh place heading into the game, but head coach Inigo Calderon was delighted with the way his team completed the season.
Bashir began a five-goal blitz that put the game out of reach after just 27 minutes. The midfielder opened the scoring after 13 minutes with a smart finish into the bottom corner before scoring a second four minutes later when he was slipped in on goal by Ronnie Gorman and calmly slotted in.
Joe Belmont rounded off an excellent move that was started by goalkeeper Alife Mansell, with Albion working it through the middle before the striker went through on goal to finish.
Belmont had his brace when he rounded Norwich keeper Henry Bullen and fired in Albion’s fourth, with Bashir then profiting from a lighting quick counter, showing a cool head to sit a defender down before beating Bullen.
Errol Mundle-Smith pulled one back before the break then found a second with 20 minutes to play to make it 5-2, but Layth Gulzar restored Albion’s four-goal cushion with a cool finish from just inside the box.
Calderon said, “Five in a row! We are the only team across the two divisions (Premier League North and South) to have finished the season so well. That shows the progression of the team over the course of the season really well.
“The players deserved this run because they have been training so hard from the first day of the season.
“The players started the game exactly how we asked and when you score five goals in the first half you have to be very good. I cannot ask for more – I could, but I don’t think it would be fair!
“We have been the best team for a while so it’s a good way to finish the season. I am happy for the players.”