Steele raises England spirits

Jason Steele was in philosophical mood as he looked back on England's first match of the UEFA European Under-19 Championship, telling uefa.com: "We should have won but when we look back it's a point gained."

Late heartbreak
Brian Eastick's side had looked set to start Group A with a victory against Switzerland thanks to Joe Mattock's free-kick shortly before half-time but Steele – who had earlier made two fine saves to keep his team in front – was finally beaten by Sébastien Wüthrich's long-range free-kick two minutes into added time. "The first game of any tournament is very tense and there weren't many chances," the England captain told uefa.com. "It was quite well balanced – it was nasty to let that goal in with the last kick of the game, obviously. He hit it well and I didn't really see it. I got two hands on it and on another day maybe I'd have tipped it round the post but it wasn't to be."

'Good game plan'
Having pinpointed François Affolter's goalline clearance from a Danny Welbeck effort as "the big turning point in the game", Steele acknowledged Switzerland had perhaps merited their late reward. "After that they cranked the pressure on us a bit, we were camped in our own half," he admitted. "They were always going to get chances, it was just a matter if we could hold on or not. We defended reasonably well, until the last kick of the game. Switzerland's game plan was really good. They just sat off us and let us play in front of them. It was hard to break through their lines, but I think a lot of teams will have that sort of game plan. They broke really well and they were quite neat and tidy on the ball. They're technically a good team."

Captain's role
Steele has worn the captain's armband in England's last three U19 games having filled the role at various levels for Middlesbrough FC and is relishing the extra responsibility. "I've been a captain at Middlesbrough before for the youth teams, but it was really special when Brian told me. It was a proud moment for me and my family. Now I've got to make sure we all stay positive. For a good couple of minutes after the game everyone's chin was on their chest, it felt like a defeat really but when we look at it it's a point gained. Rather than losing the game, we've got something out of it but obviously we should have won. I've just got to keep everyone positive and make sure everyone sticks together."

'Keep our heads'
England will have the opportunity to put their Matchday 1 disappointment behind them when they take on Ukraine on Friday and, having been part of the squad beaten 2-0 by hosts the Czech Republic in the 2008 finals, Steele is only too aware of the challenges posed by a home crowd. "We played the Czech Republic in the first game last year and they were really geed up for it in front of their home fans," he said. "I'm sure Ukraine will be the same. It's going to be a bit of an atmosphere, I'm sure the fans will come out in numbers to support their team but we've got to keep our heads, play our normal game and see what happens. We'll give it our best shot."