On Sunday 9 November, Bootham U14 Girls made the long trip north to Sunderland to compete in the regional qualifiers of the England Youth Futsal Cup. Following the disappointment of last year’s competition, the girls were eager to get back on court, take on some new opposition and test themselves against teams from across the region.

The tournament format consisted of three 25-minute games, played with a continuous clock, in a round-robin format, with every team facing each other. With only the top two teams progressing to the next round, there was plenty to play for!

Bootham were represented by Izzy S (Captain), Emily C, Rusnė V, Emily W, Maja G, Hailey-Jo A, Naomi L, Zyla A, Cherry P (Goalkeeper)

A special mention must go to Cherry, who kindly gave up her time to step in between the posts and help the team out in goal. Her willingness to support the squad was very much appreciated, and we are extremely grateful for her contribution.

Game 01

Full Time: Bootham 3 – 3 Newcastle Futsal

Scorers – Isabelle, Zyla, Naomi

Game 02

Full Time: Bootham 0 – 4 Tyneside Tigers Blues

Game 03

Full Time: Bootham 1 – 9 Tyneside Whites Blues

Scorer – Naomi

Final Standings

Position	Team	Points
1st	Tyneside Tigers Whites	6
2nd	Tyneside Tigers Blues	6
3rd	Newcastle Futsal Club	4
4th	Bootham Futsal Club	1

Player of the Tournament – Naomi L

Naomi has been part of the club for a long time, and it is fantastic to see the progress she is now making. Today was a real reflection of how far she has come. She used the court brilliantly, sometimes pushing high as our furthest forward player, while at other times dropping short to become the first receiver and help build our attacks.

Although not the biggest player on the court, Naomi showed great strength and confidence in possession. She was more than happy to shield the ball, using her body brilliantly and making it incredibly difficult for opponents to win it back. To top off a fantastic performance, she also scored two brilliant goals!

A great day for Naomi, showing huge improvements in her game. She is certainly one we will be keeping a close eye on as she continues to develop. Very well deserved! 👏

Coaches Comments

Sometimes you can look at the scores and think the girls were completely outplayed, but that certainly wasn’t the case today. In every game, the girls produced some fantastic futsal. They never gave in, kept working hard and continued to try to do the right things. It is always challenging when playing against established football teams who have been together for a long time, know each other’s games and have built up that understanding as a group. We had three girls making their futsal debuts today, alongside three U13 players who were competing against much bigger and physically stronger opposition. That makes their performances all the more impressive.

Futsal can be a cruel game. The girls had a late opportunity to win the first game, were incredibly unlucky not to score in the second and then experienced a crazy five minutes in the final game. In futsal, mistakes are often punished, and unfortunately today the girls just didn’t get that little bit of luck that you sometimes need. Our message to the players was simple: go out, play futsal and show everyone what we work on every week in training. Honestly, they didn’t disappoint.

Some of the passing combinations and movement were superb. They showed confidence and composure on the ball, were fierce in the tackle and, above all, demonstrated fantastic team spirit. Not once did they stop fighting for each other or trying to make things happen. As a coach, I honestly couldn’t have asked for any more.

A huge congratulations to Tyneside Tigers on progressing to the next round. Everyone at Bootham wishes them the very best of luck in the next stage of the competition.

For our girls, there is plenty to be proud of. The results might not have gone our way, but the performances, attitude and progress were there for everyone to see. We know what this group is capable of, and days like today will only help them grow as futsal players.