St. Teresa’s Catholic Primary School under-11 team progressed through two rounds of competitions to reach the Nationals Finals of the Pokemon U11 Small School’s Cup at the King Power Stadium, Leicester on Wednesday 7 June. The Newcastle school is part of the Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust.
National Final
St Teresa’s had previously won the Northumberland and Newcastle Small Schools’ Trophies, which led them to the North of England Finals. The players then finished in the top two out of a group of six to represent Northumberland County in the prestigious National Finals -the first time the school has reached a National Final in any sport.
On the day, the team had to play three group game fixtures. Captain Isaac Conway and Isaac Car both scored during the first game, dominating possession with a strong defence from Jamie and Ali . The match ended 2-0 to St Teresa’s.
The second match began badly for St. Teresa’s, with the opposition scoring with their first attack and shot on goal within 30 seconds. The team regrouped and replied instantly after a beautiful through ball and the two Isaac’s combining to great effect. Strong tackling from Ella on the right allowed her to shoot, with the keeper parrying to an onrushing Lucas, who coolly slotted the ball into the bottom corner to make it 3-1 with less than three minutes played.
The commentator on the ESFA YouTube channel stated that the worst thing the opposition could have done was score early, ‘as beware the wounded boys (and girl) of St. Teresa’s.’
A fourth goal was scored in only the fourth minute. Lucas with a wonderful ball from a corner and Isaac Carr was on hand to nod the ball past a despairing goalie. The commentator mentioned Lucas towards the end of the half, ‘as being the conductor of the St. Teresa’s orchestra.’ High praise indeed! The final score of the second fixture was 5-2 to a rampant St. Teresa’s.
St Teresa’s progressed onto the semi-final in black and white, representing Northumberland FA. They were to play a team that they had previously drawn 0-0 with in the North of England competition. Unfortunately, the team had given their all in four fast-paced matches and it had taken its toll on a team with no subs. The final match for St. Teresa’s was the third-fourth place play-off. That game ended 1-1, meaning that the team were joint third in the Pokemon Small Schools’ National Finals -a great effort in a highly competitive tournament. All the children should be very proud of their achievements in the competition.
Vincent Turner, Head Teacher and coach for the team said:
“‘All the children should be immensely proud of themselves for going so far in the tournament with such a small squad. I think we were the only team with no subs on the day – which makes the children’s efforts even more impressive! They all showed great resilience to bounce back from the disappointment of the semi-final defeat to dig in and battle to a hard-fought draw to claim joint third place. A superb achievement and the first time the school has made a National Final in any sport.”
Vincent commented on his team:
Dylan (GK) -made some superb saves during the tournament. Something we have seen him do over the course of the season on many occasion.
Ali – (Def) -not his natural position, but one in which he has grown into during the course of the season and he put in some timely tackles and was assured on the ball during our group stage wins. A selfless display and a tournament that he should be proud of.
Jamie (Def) -continued to grow into the tournament. Showed great composure on the ball and made some decisive blocks/tackles during the matches. Spurred us on in the latter stages with some driving runs and set up our only goal of the game in our third place play-off.
Lucas (Left-mid) -was instrumental in a lot of our attacking play and linked up brilliantly with our front four. Had an important hand in many of our goals and was a creative force to be reckoned with… tracked back and closed down, so showed he has many elements to his game!
Ella (Right-mid) -strong in the tackle and did not let it phase her that (I think) she was the only girl in the mixed tournament. Drove forward well with the ball at her feet and got the goal that her tenacious displays deserved. One to watch in the female game in years to come!
Isaac Conway (Centre-mid) -our captain fantastic. Pulled the strings in the middle of the park and it seemed like he had the ball on elastic at times. A slight injury hindered him from the semi-finals onwards, but he still gave it his all!
Isaac Carr (Forward) -ran tirelessly to close the ball down up-front. Worked hard for the team and showed he can score all sorts of goals on the day! Goal poacher, headed goals and one-on-ones were all duly dispatched by our number 9!
Chris Zarraga, Director of Schools North East added:
“It was an amazing experience for everyone, children and parents, and especially for me watching my son Jamie play. What a wonderful atmosphere. Well done to St Teresa’s for their efforts and for being such a credit to our region: effort, behaviour, sportsmanship and bowing out gracefully, though very disappointed. Their behaviour, on and off the pitch, was exemplary. Coming third out of thousands of schools was an amazing result”
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