Norwich City under-21s boss Alan Neilson felt a lack of cutting edge was the difference between one and three points in their 1-1 draw with Bristol City.

Errol Mundle-Smith’s second-half goal got the Young Canaries on the board after a poor start to their Premier League Cup campaign, but the overall feeling was one of frustration for Norwich, as they failed to beat the visiting underdogs at Colney.

Neilson put that down to the hosts’ quality in the final third, admitting his side hadn't made the most of their promising positions throughout the game.


"We were good in parts and poor in parts," he said. "In the final third we just couldn't quite find the final pass or the correct pass. We were getting in those situations.

"Second half it was probably better, first half it was probably a little bit too open. They had a few chances [in the second half], but we dominated for the first 20 minutes of it. Then they came back into it a little bit, and we just couldn't kill the game off."

The draw meant just a single point from City's opening two group games in the competition, with the 52-year-old's charges up against it in their mission to progress.

He says he doesn't mind it that way, however, and that the clarity of the task facing his players can be used as a positive.

"Our performance against Exeter was very, very poor, it was really disappointing," he continued. "But it was better [against Bristol City], and we've got four games left.

"We said in the changing room afterwards that we've probably got to win four games to finish top, because the top team goes through and the second placed teams go into another pot.

"So we'll have to win four, but that's good, because we know in this competition that we've got to go out and win the game."