EFL Kids Cup @ Burton Albion - 24th January 2019

Having taken the top two spots in this competition last year, we were hopeful of a repeat showing. However, some strong opposition and a penalty shootout defeat stopped two of the Edge Hill teams from......

Edge Hill A was the school's Y6 team who competed in group A alongside 4 other teams.  They faced off against Richard Wakefield in their first game where they scored a late penalty to win the game 1-0 (Harrison). In their second game, EH A played our other school team (Edge Hill C). Even though the game was played by children from he same school, it did not lose its competitive edge with tough tackles being put in all over the pitch. Edge Hill A proved too strong for Edge Hill C who ran away 5-0 winners with goals from Jack (x3), Harrison 2 and Charlie. The team's 3rd match was against William Shrewsbury who always prove to be tough opposition. From start to finish the game was very close with very few chances until Harrison nodded in a corner from Jack to steal the points with a 1-0 win. The final group game ended 0-0 against St Modwen's A which resulted in EH A finishing group winners and qualifying for the semi-finals.

Edge Hill B was the school's Y5 team and they played in probably the toughest group in tonight's competition.

The team's first match was against John of Rolleston who won the equivalent Derby County EFL competition last year. Rolleston were a good side with 2 or 3 very good players, but Edge Hill B passed the ball well and got the ball forward into the right positions. Unfortunately, some of the team's final passes were under or overhit allowing the defenders time to exert pressure and clear their area. Though Edge Hill B had the best chances and on another day would probably have won the match, the game finished 0-0.

The team's second match was against William Shrewsbury A, which also finished 0-0. Again, the team's final pass was not as accurate as usual and the opposition was quick to close down on the Edge Hill players. The scoreline looked to be a fair result.

Edge Hill B got off the mark with a 4-0 victory in their third match against St Modwen's B. Two goals from Max T and a goal each from Cole and Zack wrapped up matters in a routine win.

In order to qualify for the semi-finals, the final game against Tower View became a must win match. The team worked hard to regain possession and got the ball forward well, but there were few clear goal scoring opportunities. It looked pretty even between the two teams, but TV put one in over McKenzie's head to snatch the win. Though the team didn't quite play as well as they usually do, they were unlucky tonight and matched or bettered the teams they played against. Hopefully, next year will be their year.

Edge Hill C was made up of Y5 children who had never played in a team together before in a competitive competition. They tried extremely hard in each if their games and improved throughout the tournament, Unfortunately, the Y6 opposition did not show any weakness towards EH C resulting in them losing each of their 4 league games. Each player put in a fantastic amount of effort and showed a great attitude throughout.

Edge Hill A qualified for the semi-finals and were drawn against Towerview who had finished 2nd in the other group. Edge Hill A dominated for most of the game but just could not take their chances. This resulted in the dreaded penalty shoot-out to decide who would progress to the final. After missing each of their 3 penalties, EH A were knocked out to the eventual winners of the competition.

One final game awaited EH A against St Modwen's A to decide who would claim 3rd place. EH A started off emphatically and took a 3-0 lead within 7 minutes after goals from Max B and Jack 2. St Modwen's pulled two goals back late on before the game ended 3-2. An excellent overall effort from EH A who all played some brilliant football and fully deserved 3rd place.