Promising young defender Alex Ishida-Livings admits he has a few mixed feelings about his first season with Inglewood United.   Ishida-Livings enjoyed a stellar campaign in the Under-20s, captaining the team through all 22 regular season games and invited to spend the closing weeks of the winter with the senior squad.

But the teenager’s achievements are tinged somewhat by a disrupted season which culminated in the Under-20s finishing ninth on the ladder.   “I have absolutely enjoyed my first Inglewood season,” Ishida-Livings, 18, enthused.   “I was lucky to be part of a team with a great bunch of lads, excellent coaches and fantastic facilities.”

“However, it’s hard to reflect on the season without feeling a little underwhelmed with the outcome.   In the first half of the year we were plagued by instability with managerial and squad changes.   This made it difficult for us to develop a level of consistency and as a consequence we only won two games.”

“In the second round of fixtures we managed five wins and were probably deserving of a few more.   Perhaps if we were under Andrija Petrovic for the entire season then things would’ve been a lot different and we may have even have made the top four.   We all learnt a lot this season and will come back stronger in 2017.”

But before next season rolls around Ishida-Livings is being given a good idea of what is required for him to take his game to the next level by training with senior coach Taki Nicolaidis.   “The difference in intensity between the Under-20s and the first team is immense and it’s taken a while to get used to that,” he said.

“Training at this level has improved my own game but I don’t think I’ll be challenging for a first team spot for some time.   I’m grateful to Taki for providing me with the opportunity to learn as much as I can from the senior players.   I now know where I need to keep on developing if I want to be challenging for the first team.”