It was a case of so near and yet so far for Colchester United's youth team - beaten by mighty Leeds United, but only in a penalty shoot-out.

The Russian Roulette of penalties may not be the fairest way to settle a cup-tie but, after 120 minutes of stalemate, it was the only way these teams could be prised apart.

As first-team boss Steve Whitton remarked afterwards, spot-kicks are nothing more than a lottery. Unfortunately for Micky Cook's young guns, Leeds were clutching the winning ticket on Thursday night.

Things looked decidedly rosy when Andy Walker saved Tony Lennon's penalty and Sean Hillier buried his to put the U's in the driving seat.

But subsequent misses from Gregg Heighway and Thomas Pinault - who blazed his effort over the bar - brought the curtain down on a heartbreaking night.

Tears flowed at the final whistle as the U's youths trudged off the Layer Road turf with their heads bowed.

But they can take heart from a brave performance against illustrious opponents in which, ironically, they created the better chances.

Kelechi Opara - who has already tasted first-team action - proved a thorn in Leeds' side all night with his pace and trickery.

In fact, the U's disappointment might have been averted if the youngster had cashed in on a golden opportunity at the death.

With 92 minutes on the clock Opara was sent clean through but, instead of taking a touch, he drilled a tame shot straight at Harpur with the goal at his mercy.

The same player squandered another decent chance when a thunderbolt shot from Canham deflected into his path. But Opara's shot flew high and wide.

Jack Wignall proved a tower of strength at the heart of the U's defence while Hillier also caught the eye at right-back.

The two nearly combined in the 30th minute to nudge the U's in front. Hillier flighted a free-kick on to the head of Wignall but his looping effort dropped over the bar.

Heighway also used his height to good advantage and came close to breaking the deadlock with a bullet header eight minutes from the end of normal time.

Ricki Metcalfe impressed during the first hour but faded as the match progressed while Canham was never afraid to try his luck from range.

One first-half effort screamed wide of the far post and a 35-yard volley from the boot of the same player was only a foot too high.

Frenchman Pinault - also on the fringe of the first team - stamped his authority as the game wore on and tried his luck deep into injury time, latching on to a through ball by Hillier.

But his shot on the turn was smothered at the near post by goalkeeper Harpur.

Nicky Gyoury, Sam Okafor and Andy Taylor also played their part in a stirring display.

Leeds promised so much but, in truth, delivered little in terms of creating chances and Walker was a virtual spectator in the U's goal.

Only livewire striker Harpal Singh caught the eye with his blistering runs at the heart of the U's defence.

Twice he nearly capped breakaway moves by firing the visitors into the lead. But on both occasions he dragged his shot wide of the far post.

Both teams began to look jaded as the game reached its inevitable conclusion. And within minutes, the U's cup dream had reached a bitterly disappointing finale.

In and out - U's keeper Andy Walker looks aghast after conceding the final penalty in the shoot-out.

Heartbreak for 'magnificent' 11

Manager Micky Cook heralded his young guns as "magnificent" after seeing them bow out of the FA Youth Cup on penalties against Leeds.

With the score locked at 0-0 after extra time a shoot-out beckoned and the battling U's eventually tumbled out 4-2.

Cook said after the game: "I feel so disappointed for the lads because they played brilliantly.

"It was an awful way to go out of the competition but rules are rules. After the game the Leeds officials came into our dressing room to console the lads. They said they should take heart because they thoroughly deserved a result."

Gregg Heighway and Thomas Pinault were the unlucky U's stars to fail from the spot after Sean Hillier and Kelechi Opara kept the shoot-out alive.

Cook added: "I'm sure they'll look back one day and appreciate what a good job they did.

"It's all part of the learning curve."

A bumper crowd of more than 2,000 flocked to Layer Road to see the U's stars of tomorrow.

"Full credit to the people of Colchester who turned out in their hundreds to see our lads play the mighty Leeds," said the U's youth chief.

"I hoped there would be as big a crowd as that and I'm sure they'll have been impressed by what they saw."

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