WESTLEY RARING TO GO IN EAST LANCASHIRE DERBY CUP CLASH

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Young Clarets captain gunning for more goals

2022-11-01T09:00:00.000Z

WESTLEY RARING TO GO IN EAST LANCASHIRE DERBY CUP CLASH

Young Clarets captain gunning for more goals

2022-11-01T09:00:00.000Z

CLARETS CALENDAR: YOUR GUIDE TO THE WEEK AHEAD - Image 2

Youth team captain Joe Westley is hungry to continue his goalscoring exploits ahead of this afternoon’s East Lancashire derby in the Lancashire FA Professional Youth Cup.

Tony Philliskirk’s side host Blackburn Rovers at the Burnley Training Centre in the Quarter-Finals of the regional competition this afternoon (2pm KO), and Westley goes into the game on the back of a hat-trick at Hull City last time out as the Young Clarets won 4-3.

The 17-year-old striker spoke to the Club’s media in the build-up to today’s game, discussing his fine start to the season in front of goal, leading the team, and the squad’s desire to keep winning games.

Westley on his hat-trick at Hull:

“The first one is a penalty, and I’ve been working on them since the Charlton [Athletic] game earlier this season where I missed two.

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“That’s two I’ve scored since then, and the second goal at the weekend came from me breaking free from my marker at a corner to volley in at the back post.

“Lucas [Wane] put in a great ball for my third, I got to it before the defender and flicked it into the bottom corner, so they were three good goals.”

Westley on recovering from a long-term injury last season:

“Everything’s changed for me from a diet and fitness point of view. I’m making sure I stay on top of all that sort of stuff, and it’s definitely helped me. I’m just ready to keep on scoring now, and it’s all about consistency for me over the next few games.

“We’ve got a big few games coming up, and that starts today with Blackburn. We’re excited.”

Westley on wearing the armband:

“It was a really nice thing for Tony to put faith in me to be the captain [of the U18s], and something that I think I’ve taken to well.

WESTLEY RARING TO GO IN EAST LANCASHIRE DERBY CUP CLASH - Image 2

“I’m learning every day about being a captain, and what it takes, and I think I’ve made a good start, but there’s always room to improve.”

Westley on learning from former Clarets striker Philliskirk:

“He’s always giving me help in finishing sessions on the different types of finishes and the different types of movements you need to make to be successful as a striker, especially when I’m in and around the box.

“Having an ex-striker as coach definitely benefits me, and he’s definitely helped me a lot so far this season. It’s great for me and the rest of the lads to be able to work closely alongside him.”

Westley on the youth team turning strong performances into successful results:

“At the start of the season, we were adapting to a new way of playing and I think that does take a bit of time, but now I feel like we’re all getting to grips with it a bit more.

CLARETS CALENDAR: YOUR GUIDE TO THE WEEK AHEAD - Image 1

“We’re running that bit harder, working for each other that bit more, covering more ground, and turning the chances we had at the start of the season into goals which is ultimately how you win games.

“All of that’s starting to come together, and we’re looking a bit better. We’ve won a few games recently, and we need to keep that going now.”

Westley on the derby:

“We know how big it is, even at U18s level. We’ve all prepared well for today and we’re looking forward to it now.

“We want to come away from it having won the game, we know we’ll go into it and do everything we can to get that win.”