WE’RE ON TOP OF THE WORLD
CONIFA is a big hit across the capital
THE 2018 CONIFA World Football Cup came to a thrilling conclusion last night as over 2,000 fans crammed in to enjoy an evening of celebration at Enfield Town’s Queen Elizabeth II Stadium.
The tournament provided a fantastic opportunity to demonstrate the superb facilities across much of the Non-League pyramid with the fortnight long tournament being played at a range of Non-League grounds within London and its surrounding areas.
As well as Enfield’s 2,500 capacity QU11 stadium, matches have been played at nine other Non-League grounds including the 3G venues at Slough Town’s Arbour Park stadium, Sutton United’s Gander Green Lane and Bromley’s Hayes Lane stadium.
The final represented the culmination of an exciting day of action in Enfield, where Padania had earlier secured third position in dramatic circumstances following a 5-4 penalty shootout victory over Szekely Land.
Northern Cyprus and Kárpátalja – who represent the Hungarian minority in Carpathian Ruthenia – both booked their places in the final after securing victories at Carshalton’s Colston Avenue on Thursday.
Kárpátalja won the match 3-2 in another shootout after a 0-0 draw.
Passion
The tournament, which was first played in 2014 in the Swedish city of Östersund, is designed as an alternative to the World Cup for nations who are not affiliated or recognised by world gioverning body FIFA.
Sixteen teams contested this year’s tournament, with sides representing regions, stateless peoples or minorities. The competition has seen teams from far-flung
places such as Kiribati and Tuvalu (both located in the Oceanic region of the Pacific Ocean) battle it out around the capital.
And the tournament has proved a huge success with many teams bringing a dedicated bunch of supporters who have cheered on their sides with extraordinary passion.
While the fantastic atmosphere at most games has attracted plenty of media attention, the matches have
also provided an opportunity to keep tabs on plenty of past and present NonLeague talent.
Call-up
Eagle eyed Non-League fans may have noticed players such as Banbury United’s Anthony Wright (Cascadia), Staines Town academy product Tong Soung-lee (United Nations of Korea) and Beaconsfield Town’s Aaron Minhas (Panjab) taking to the field, while fans at Aveley’s Parkside stadium were treated to a surprise appearance from Liverpool legend Bruce Grobbelaar on Thursday as he was given a late call-up to the Matabeleland squad for their game against the Chagos Islands.
The 60-year-old, who had taken up the role of Matabeleland’s Goalkeeping Coach during the tournament, rolled back the years to keep a clean sheet as his side prevailed in a 1-0
victory in Essex.