Girls banish demons to finally lift county Futsal trophy

After losing out narrowly in successive finals, Maidenhead u14s Girls Blues banished some demons by winning the Berkshire County Futsal competition on Saturday, scoring 23 goals as they went through the tournament unbeaten.

The Blues team of Rebecca Hesketh, Sofia Lacey, Emily McCartney, Emily McMaster, Daniela Yakubovich and Becky Tinnelly took a while to find their feet as they started with a couple of 1-1 draws, but they soon found their stride to beat Reading 2-0, Wargrave 5-0 and Caversham 4-0 in their remaining pool matches.

They then comfortably came through their quarterfinal (3-0) and semi-final (2-0) matches before beating Caversham 3-2 in the final.

The Whites u14s were unfortunate not to pick up better results, with Violet Kingston-Wheeler, Georgina Evans and Hattie Parkinson, in particular, playing well.

Elsewhere there were resounding wins for the u18s Anacondas, who beat

Meadow Sports 5-2 at home in Division 3, and the u18s Santos, who were 3-1 winners over Binfield Titans. The u16s

Boys were solid 2-0 winners over FC Holyport Hawks while the u15s Cobras beat Teddington Athletic Tigers 3-2 away in Division 5.

Freddie Nash netted twice as the U14s Colts lost 3-2 at home to Eversley and California, while the u12s Panthers were beaten 7-4 by Berks County Wolves in Division 6. Manager Roland Gill felt his side should have come away from the game with something to show for their efforts. Ionut Mihai, Harry McGill and Harry James

(two) scored for the side.

The u12s Dolphins lost 3-1 to Pangbourne Pumas in the cup, while the Foxes u12s lost by the same scoreline to AFC Reading Spitfires in Division 2. Maddie Sturt netted twice as the u12s Girls nine-a-side team came from behind to beat Tilehurst Panthers Reds 4-3 away from home. Lizzie Ainscough and Charlotte Hesketh were also on target, with Hesketh netting the winner from a free-kick.

The u16s Girls lost 7-0 at Wargrave Girls in Division 1, and the u18s Girls Blue Sox completed the double over Ashford Town with a 4-1 win.

Jess Welch (two), Nancy Dean and Hollie O'Neill were the scorers in a win that all but seals the u18s Division South Championship title.