THERE were mixed emotions at the final whistle for the two Walkwood Church of England Middle School teams who proudly represented Redditch in the County Cup finals at South Bromsgrove High School.
Walkwood’s year eight girls’ team and year seven boys’ team had both reached the finals, which ended in glory for the girls whilst the boys finished runners-up.
With the County Cup final proving a step too far for the girls in the past, it was a huge achievement for them to reach this stage after overcoming some tough tests including a thrilling 6-4 win against Christopher Whitehead School in the semis.
Walkwood met Baxter College of Kidderminster in the final and imposed their game in impressive style, scoring within the first five minutes.
Walkwood did not let up and continued to play at an extremely high intensity, scoring six goals before half time.
Baxter never gave up and continued to fight throughout the second half, but Walkwood continued to build on their impressive first half display and ran out 11-1 victors.
Walkwood were excellent in the final and PE teacher and manager Rich Macdonald is extremely proud of their achievements.
The team and school would like to thank Thomas Brothers and Robert Oulsnam & Company for their generosity in providing new kit and finals jackets which made the day extra special for everyone involved.
In a closely contested match against Witton Middle School of Droitwich, the year seven Walkwood boys were unlucky to lose 1-0 to a 30-yard wonder strike.
The final began with a midfield battle and neither team were able to break down the opposition and get a clean shot on target.
This continued throughout the first half until a defensive mistake from Witton allowed Walkwood a one-on-one with the keeper, who produced a good save to keep the score at 0-0 at half time.
The second half began with another midfield battle until ten minutes in when a Witton midfielder received the ball 30 yards from goal and fired home just above the dive of the despairing Walkwood goalkeeper.
Despite going close on several occasions, including hitting the bar, Walkwood were unable to find the equaliser.
The boys, managed by PE teacher Mr Hunt, have performed superbly this year and have had a successful season, winning two Redditch competitions and finishing runners-up in the County Cup.
The team would like to thank sponsors Real Nosh Cafe for their kit and R&H Electric (Redditch) for the finals jackets.
