A group of Under 11 boys from Etwall Primary School will represent Derby County at the National Final of the Kinder+ Sport Kids Cup in May.
Following a fine display at Barnsley’s Training Ground in the Northern Regional Final on Friday, Etwall will go on to play at Wembley Stadium ahead of the Sky Championship Play Off Final for the National Final of the Kids Cup.This is the second year running that Derby County have had a school side present at Wembley and Etwall will be hoping to replicate the success of Hilton Primary School, who went all the way to lift the Kids Cup Trophy at the 2016 final.
Etwall qualified to represent Derby after their victory at local level back in January. They came out on top against 60 local schools from across Derbyshire to progress to the Regional Finals.
At the Regionals they came up against all the teams who won their respective local finals and battled it out for the place at Wembley, where they will take on the winners of the Southern Regional Final.
Two early 0-0 draws against Burton Albion and Leeds saw Etwall begin to find their rhythm, going on to win their next three games against Huddersfield Town, Barnsley and Blackburn Rovers to top their group and progress straight into the Final.
The Final saw the boys come up against a strong Wigan Athletic side who had impressed throughout the day. The match was a cagey affair which went all the way to extra time after a 0-0 draw and looked destined for penalties, only for Etwall to be awarded a penalty late on which was coolly converted, taking them on to win the match 1-0 and progress to the National Final.
Following the win, Derby County Community Trust’s Participation Manager, Richard Mansfield, said: “The boys did a fantastic job and represented their school and Derby County Football Club brilliantly.
“They put on an excellent footballing display and are fully deserving of the chance to play at Wembley.”
Derby County Community Trust will be on hand in helping Etwall Primary prepare for the final by attending training sessions and helping to coach them in the build up to the big day.
Find out more by visiting derbycountycommunitytrust.com.
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