Youngsters 'embarrassed one or two' senior teammates during Blackpool's friendly defeat to Leeds United

Jack Moore, Harvey Hughes and Rob Apter were all given minutes during the heavy 4-0 defeat at York City’s ground.

Moore stuck to his task well during the side’s improved second-half display, while Apter - a diminutive attacking midfielder - filled in at both left-back and right-back.

It was a tough evening for the Seasiders, who found themselves three goals down at half-time thanks to some lax defending against their top flight opponents.

“Apart from the international players missing, they put out a pretty strong outfit, they were up for it and they knocked the ball around well,” Appleton told The Gazette.

“Although saying that, I’m not going to make excuses for conceding three set-pieces. As well as they might pop it about at times, we still have to be better with the goals we did concede.

“What you’ve got to do against this type of opposition, when you know they’re going to have more ball than you, is frustrate them, stay in the game and make it difficult for them.

“All of a sudden, there’s a bit of anxiety that creeps into their play when it’s 0-0 and you get later in the game and you’re still in it, but we didn’t allow them to do that.

“Having said that, I gave the lads the opportunity to have two 45s again and there were a couple of young lads who didn’t do themselves any harm. They looked really competitive and if anything embarrassed one or two of the senior players.

“I thought Jack was excellent, I thought Rob was excellent. They were two standouts certainly who were competitive, they showed a bit of composure at times.

“Yes, they got done with athleticism and pace but they’re up against Premier League players.”

Appleton added: “I thought the second-half group were great, they were really good.

“Obviously the goal near the end is a massive deflection, but I don’t think Grimmy has had to make a save.

“We’ve had a couple of opportunities and they stuck to their task, so the lads in the second 45 will be really happy with their work. Not so much the lads in the first-half.”