Sergei Baltacha was beaming with pride after his Charlton U18s were crowned as Professional Development League 2 national winners for the third time in four years on Friday night.
The Addicks defeated Crystal Palace in the play-off final at The Valley, with Albie Morgan and Brendan Sarpong-Wiredu netting Charlton’s goals.
And afterwards Baltacha said that he couldn’t put his pride into words.
“I can’t describe how I feel,” he said. “I am so proud of the boys – it is an unbelievable achievement from them again.
“Collectively, it was an outstanding performance. The boys have worked so hard this season and this is a huge reward for them and that effort and hard work.
“It would be unfair to single out individual players. It was a great team performance. We were strong in the first half and in the second half the whole team was outstanding.”
The Addicks have lifted the national title in 2015, 2016 and now 2018 and Baltacha explained what the key to the young Addicks’ ongoing success has been.
He said: “The people of Charlton’s academy help to make it so special. Steve Avory, Hamza, Adam Lawrence, Joe Francis, the medical staff, everyone impacts the academy.
“The boys also have a great desire to learn and a desire to perform. We want to develop our U18s as players and as people. That is vital for us at Charlton.”
Supporters can watch Baltcha’s interview in full on Valley Pass