Steve Cooper believes his England U17s group can only learn from their Euro heart-ache in Ireland this week.
The Young Lions are heading home early after missing out on a quarter final spot due to their third-place finish at the group stage.
After a draw in their opening game with France last week and then a defeat to the Netherlands, their first loss of the season, the 3-1 win over Sweden on Thursday wasn’t enough to secure progress to the knockout stage.
And while head coach Cooper admits it’s disappointing to be out of the tournament, he believes the players can channel their emotions in the right way to improve and bounce back.
“There’s obviously a sense of disappointment because the objectives of these events are always to get to the knockout stages and go as far as you can,” admitted Cooper.
“We knew from the draw and also group D (Spain, Italy, Germany, Austria) that there were going to be two very good teams that would go out at this stage.
“We’ve played 17 games this year and the Holland game is the first one we lost, so it’s a harsh world.
“If you’ve seen the performances and progression of the players throughout the season, there’s everything to be proud of and optimistic that the lads are in a good place in their international career.
“I’ll be saying to the lads how these events in the past have enabled England players to become better players going forward.
“Look at somebody like Mason Mount, when he was with the U17s we got knocked out fairly early in the tournament and then 12 months later, he won it with the U19s.
“Trevoh Chalobah and Andre Dozzell were the same, and I’m sure they were better for their experience with the U17s because you’ve got to learn from losing.
“Look at the way the lads in 2017 lost [on penalties in U17 Euro Final], and I’ve no doubt that helped us in India to win the U17 World Cup a few months later.”
For this group of players, after their first taste of a competitive international tournament, it now means they’ll progress into the U18 programme for the 2019-20 campaign.
It’s another step forward on the international development ladder, but also another opportunity for them to catch the eye.
“I’m satisfied with the work that’s been done throughout this season and it puts the players in a great place for next year and it will help them develop,” added Cooper.
“These lads will now move into the U18s next season, and they’ll have a games programme that allows them to have more opportunities and experiences to get them closer to the senior team so that when they get there, they’ll feel as ready as you can be.
“There’s everything to look forward to for them.
“With the boys that have broken through with the U21s and the seniors, it wasn’t that long ago that they were U17s, so the messages that we’re giving the players are very believable now.”
The next England development team to be in action this summer is Paul Simpson’s U20s who head to France for the annual Maurice Revello Tournament in Toulon.
