Finalists bid to put best fut forward!
North teams hoping success kicks in in cup decider
TWO North East teams hope success will kick in this weekend when they take on the country’s best in a top competition.
Boldon CA Colts and Girls Youth Under-10s and Hebburn Town Juniors Under-14s are contesting the national final of the Pokémon Futsal Youth Cup.
The competition, organised by England Football, is being staged in Wolverhampton.
Over the past five months, more than 1,000 club teams have participated in local and regional heats.
Boldon and Hebburn triumphed in the regional final at Northumbria University earlier this month.
During today and tomorrow they will take on other regional winners from Cheshire, Birmingham, Devon, Somerset, Cambridge, Huntingdonshire, Lincolnshire, Leicestershire, Suffolk, Hampshire, Surrey, Essex, Middlesex, Sussex, Lancashire, Manchester and the North Riding.
Ahead of the final, Daniel Hopper, coach of regional winners Boldon CA Colts and Girls Youth, said: “We have had a fantastic time in the Pokémon tournament so far.
“These girls only started playing futsal two months ago so to win the local and regional groups is an amazing effort from them.”
Futsal is an exciting, fast-paced form of the game which originates in South America and several world stars have roots in the game.
Played on hard pitches with small-sided teams, futsal places emphasis on technical skill in restricted spaces.
Pokémon is the title partner of the FA’s Youth Futsal Programme which aims to work with boys and girls aged eight to 16.
Alongside the Pokémon Futsal initiative in schools, youth football clubs across the country have taken part in this season’s Pokémon Futsal Youth Cup, which kicked off in November last year.