Brentford Under-18s fought out a tough 0-0 draw with Luton Town Under-18s in a tight clash at the Robert Rowan Performance Centre on Saturday morning.

The young Bees’ defence was resolute across 90 minutes, led by keeper Reggie Rose who made two vital saves in the final minutes of play.

The opening 10 minutes proved an even contest, both sides enjoying time with possession without seriously challenging the opposition’s defence.

Kaya Halil put the Luton Town keeper under some pressure with his first free kick on 11 minutes, however it was well saved.

Luton Town nearly went ahead when Will Houghton found himself free inside the box, but he couldn’t convert, his shot hitting the right post.

The visitors dominated much of the attacking play throughout the next 20 minutes, however they were unable to probe the young Bees’ defence with any authority.

Brentford’s starting back three of Kerron Samuels, Chanse Headman and a trialist along with Rose worked seamlessly together and managed to take some pace out of the game and retain possession.

After absorbing Luton Town's attacks, Brentford turned the momentum with some forward moves of their own, Emeka Peters breaking forward but being called offside.

Peters proved a threat again inside the final minutes of the first half, finding a trialist on the left side whose shot went left of the goal.

Remy Bennison kept Brentford’s momentum going to start the second half as he found himself in a scoring position inside 30 seconds, however his shot rebounded off a Luton Town defender.

Konstanin Ivanov nearly had an immediate impact when he came in on 66 minutes, putting the ball in front of a running Ollie Shield who was met by Luton Town’s keeper who made a strong save.

Andre Grey returned to the U18s line-up and played an important role throughout the second half, his calmness and composure important for the young Bees throughout the midfield and in defence as the visitors continued to attack.

As the second half approached the final 10 minutes, both sides continued to search for a winner. Luton Town’s Charlie Trustram had two chances to do so for his side, however both were saved by Rose.

As was the case throughout the opening 85 minutes, Brentford’s defence stood up when it mattered most. Mikel Francis made a strong tackle inside the box on 87 minutes, saving a sure shot on target.

Moments later in added time Rose made two vital saves, the keeper deflecting a shot from Trustram and a follow up strike to secure a 0-0 draw for the young Bees.

Brentford U18: Rose, Taylor, Bennison (Ivanov, 66’), Samuels, Headman, Halil, Shield, Booth (Grey, 57’), Peters (Djoro, 66’), trialist (Francis, 57’), trialist (Agyei, 83’)

Luton Town: Hockey, Chigozie, Benagr (Anderson, 64’), Gregory, Emery, Routh, Harvey, Lorentzen-Jones (Kirby, 53’), Odegah (Kayibanda, 64’), Trustram, Houghton (Xavier-Jones, 80’)

Subs not used: Pipa

Lydia Bedford pleased with defensive effort

Brentford Under-18 head coach Lydia Bedford praised her side's defensive efforts after they denied a handful of promising attacking moves by Luton Town.

Samuels, Headman, Rose and a trialist led the way in the opening 45 minutes, but were assisted well by Bennison and Freddie Taylor throughout the game.

"I thought it was a pretty bright first half from both teams. On the whole I think they had more chances to score in the first half than we did, but I thought defensively we were pretty resolute, defended the space really well in behind," said Bedford.

"I think we worked quite well as a (defensive) unit ... collectively they worked together as a backline better than they normally do."

Speaking about Grey's return to the line-up, Bedford said his versatility is a strong point and a part of his game that he brought to the pitch on Saturday.

"We've talked to him about where he plays and he can play in the backline, he can play midfield, he can probably do a job at wing-back or full-back for us," said Bedford.

"It felt like the right moment to get him on and I think he added that quality."