European footballing success for Year 7 pupil
Year 7 Pupil, Jemima Lister, has recently competed in the Barcelona Girls Cup with Swindon Town Girls Centre for Football Excellence (CFFE) coming 3rd place against a host of European clubs.
11-year-old Jemima currently plays for Swindon Town Girls CFFE and Ashton Keynes U12 Youth Football Club. Earlier in the year Swindon Town Girls CFFE had been invited to compete in the Barcelona Girls Cup, taking on some of the best girls teams from around Europe.
The tournament consisted of 2 groups of 5 teams who competed in a round robin tournament to decide the teams to go on to the knockout stages.
Swindon town came second in their group on goal difference after winning against Catalonian team, UE Saints; Belgian Team, IK Dien; English team, St John’s; and drawing against eventual tournament winners, EF Manu Lanzarote A.
Swindon Town proceeded to the Semi Final’s where they lost to local team UD Viladecans. Their final game was against sister team, Swindon Town FITC, to decided 3rd and 4th place. Jemima and the team won the game on penalties and awarded a bronze medal and 3rd place in the tournament.
Jemima said: “It was an amazing experience. It was great to play against other girls from all over the world and I am so proud of the team for how far we got.”
Off the pitch the team embraced the local culture and enjoyed the weather, spending down town on the beach and in the local swimming pool, while also cheering on their fellow Swindon Team.
The Barcelona Girls Cup is an international youth football tournament for girls, held in Santa Susanna, on the coast of Barcelona. The tournament takes place yearly over the course of two days against teams from all across Europe.
Swindon Town Girls CFFE is a pathway for U10’s to U16’s to develop their skills in a structured environment, under the guidance of Swindon Town FC Coaches. The aim is for the girls to progress to Swindon Town LFC, who are currently playing in the Women’s Premier League.
