Courtesy: The FA.com


College Futsal champions crowned

Tuesday, 19 May, 2009

Inaugural Finals held in Swindon

New ground was broken by British Colleges Sport last Wednesday with the first ever National Colleges Futsal Championships being held in true style at the state of the art Swindon Futsal arena. Eight colleges attended the event, having progressed from two national qualifying events held by British Colleges Sport in January.

In a great exhibition of Futsal under the watchful eye of England Head Coach Peter Sturgess, Manchester College beat Queen Mary’s College from Basingstoke in overtime to claim the title of Men’s BCS National Futsal Cup champions.

It has been an impressive year for Manchester College having also won the Men’s BCS National Elite Cup the week prior. The victory marks the magnificent progress of the Manchester College team since they were introduced to the small-sided game only seven months ago. In that time, the college has formed a successful partnership with local FA National League Futsal club, Manchester Futsal Club.

Simon Wright, General Manager of Manchester Futsal Club and Manchester College’s Football Development Officer, was naturally delighted with the team’s success.

“The college team have shown that with the right application and the willingness of the players and coaching staff to embrace Futsal, and the benefits of playing the game, that great strides can be made in a relatively short time," he said.

"Futsal has been a great tool for engaging our 16-18-year-old students that can often stop playing or lose interest in 11-aside football.”

The women’s final was an equally exciting affair, with Sutton Coldfield College beating Long Road Sixth Form to reach the final and Bridgwater College beating Telford College to claim their final place.

Both finalists showed skill and flair in abundance, but despite some excellent play from Bridgwater, they could not prevent Sutton Coldfield College racing to victory and becoming the first ever women’s BCS National Futsal Cup champions. It’s been a fantastic achievement for Sutton, making it a treble of titles this year with the BCS National Cup and BCS five-a-side National Champions already secured.

Further details of the event with pictures and standings are available on www.britishcollegessport.org








Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com