Primary school footballers finally make it to the pitch

Female footballers from four local schools took to the pitch to battle for this year’s Catholic Cup Tournament, the second part of a multi-school event involving young players.

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It was the first time they had been able to take part in the cup competition, as the girls’ event was rained-off during the inaugural staging of the tournament in 2019, and it has not been held since, due to Covid restrictions.

This time the weather was more favourable, as St Bede’s, Bedlington, trounced the opposition to win all four matches, beating home side St Aidan’s, Ashington, in the final to win the coveted trophy 3-0. The schools are part of the Bishop Bewick Catholic Education Trust.

It was St Aidan’s headteacher, Michael Moran, who originally set up the Catholic Cup: “When I was appointed deputy in 2018, I was keen to bring some competitive sport to our school, as it was something we hadn’t really had until I arrived. I founded the competition as a way for our partnership to celebrate all the fantastic footballers in our schools. All the kids have a great time.”

As well as winners St Bede’s and hosts St Aidan’s, teams from St Paul’s and St Wilfred’s took part in the Under 11 Girls’ tournament, which was the third of three stand-alone competitions, each of which was contested and decided on the day.

Former students also had a key part to play in the tournament, as 12 sports leaders from St Benet Biscop’s High School acted as referees across the three events.

“The children all had a fantastic time,” said Mr Moran. “It was really nice to see the children from our partnership together again after such a long period of time. All of the children in the tournament were incredibly competitive, but they really looked out for each other and made sure everyone was OK.”

The Under 9 Boys’ Catholic Cup was won by St Aidan’s, who beat St Wilfred’s 3-1, while the Under 11 Boys’ winners were Ss Peter & Paul’s in a nail-biting sudden death decider against St Aidan’s.