The cold weather over the weekend saw Sunday’s first-team game away at league leaders Durham Cestria postponed, so this week’s update sees us take a look at how the Ladies’ Junior teams have been getting on so far this season.
Read all about it in our latest weekly update!
County Ladies have teams from Under 9s right through to the Under 16s, playing football in the Cheshire Girls’ Football League and South Manchester Girls’ Football League. Above this age group, players can then move on to join one of our three open-age squads. We are one of a very small number of Clubs in the North-West who can offer a complete pathway of league football, from primary school age through to competing at FA Women’s National League level.
We will also soon be re-launching our Wildcats sessions, for players aged 5-11 years who are new to organized football. These will be on Sunday mornings, and are run on a pay-as-you-play basis with no membership fees. These sessions will offer a starting step on the pathway to match football, ideal for young girls who want to have a go at the game before committing to the club. Keep a look out on our social media channels for dates and times!
Teams at Under 9-11 ages play in non-competitive leagues where the emphasis is on enjoying the game and developing the players, both individually and as members of a team. Scores and league tables are not recorded or published, in accordance with this philosophy and FA guidelines for junior football.
From Under 12s onwards league tables are published. We currently have two Under 12s teams, Blues and Hatters, playing in the CGFL. Both teams are jointly managed by Amelia Holland and Caitlin Harkness-Hall, who do a brilliant job running a big squad of girls. The Hatters are currently top of their league, and the Blues lie third – a huge credit to the two young coaches.
Our Under 13s are also having a great season and are top of their Division in the SMGFL. The Under 14s are second in Division 1 for their age group, with a game in hand on the leaders. A nine point gap separates the U15s from their nearest challengers at the top of the table in their Division, and the Under 16s lie fifth in their league. With players like this coming up through the age groups, the future of County Ladies is looking very bright!
The growth in women’s and girls’ football since last year’s Lionesses victory in the Euros has seen a big increase in the number of players applying to join the Club, especially at the younger age groups. We will always try and accommodate players interested in joining; the only limiting factor being the availability of pitch space at training!
All of our Junior coaches are volunteers, as are all our Club staff who give up many hours of their spare time, not only to coach and prepare sessions, but also to complete coaching qualifications, liaise with leagues and opposition teams and do all the unseen admin that comes with running a junior football team. Without their help and commitment to the club, and to girl’s football, we would not be able to function and we’d like to thank them for all the work they do.
