Minterne to represent Gills in regional finals...
Last Wednesday our Community Trust team hosted the Local Finals of the npower Football League U11 Kids Cup.The competition gives schools in Kent the opportunity to compete in a nationwide tournament which culminates in the final being played a Wembley before the League 2 Play-off final. We had huge interest in the tournament from schools all across Kent and many had been in training since last year’s tournament.
The event was held at UK Paper Sports Ground in Sittingbourne and a huge thank you goes to them for their help and hospitality.
The group stages kicked-off and as in previous years the football was highly competitive with the majority of games very close. First year scholars refereed the games, while Community Coaches were on hand to help keep the day running smoothly.
Once the group stages were complete and the results finalised the eight schools progressing through to the Quarter-Finals were revealed.
The quarter-finals saw Minterne Junior School v Hernhill Primary School, Roseacre Junior School v Delce Junior School, Twydall Primary School v Upton Junior School and St Thomas of Canterbury RC Primary School v Sandown Primary School (A team).
As expected the quarter-finals were very tight and saw St Thomas’ and Twydall win 1-0 while the other two games were 0-0 draws, meaning sudden death penalties, which Minterne and Delce won.
The semi-finals were again very close with only one goal scored by St Thomas’ seeing them safely through to the final while Minterne had to win their place in the final in another shoot-out.
The final saw both teams eager to score and both goalkeepers were constantly pressed but neither team could break the deadlock, meaning another sudden death penalty shoot-out would be required.
With everyone’s nerves on edge the players stepped up to take their penalties and the crowd were treated to some very impressive goals but Minterne managed to hold their nerve the longest and grab the victory.
Minterne Junior School now go on to represent Gillingham Football Club at the Regional Finals to be hosted by AFC Wimbledon on 14th March with the chance to win themselves a trip to Wembley so good luck!
A huge thank you to all the teams, players, countless teachers, staff members, parents and supporters, scholars and community coaches who all helped to make the day a great success. And congratulations again to Minterne Junior School!