The Hunts School Sports Partnership (HSSP) has hosted its first-ever Futsal competition for school children from eight primary schools in Huntingdonshire.
Children in Years 3 and 4 attended One Leisure St Ives Indoor Centre for the afternoon competition on November 30, which made for a great first event.
The following week on December 7, the second and final futsal competition for 2022/23 was held for 50 Year 5 and 6 girls from seven schools.
In the first competition, each team played four matches, starting with 3 group games, followed by a placing game against the equivalent placed team from the other group.
The format and ball allowed for fast-paced and exciting matches, resulting in plenty of shots and lots of goals.
Futsal, a Fifa-sanctioned version of five-a-side football, formed from the contraction of futebol de salão (Portuguese) and fútbol sala (Spanish), meaning hall football, is an indoor sport, played five against five on a court.
The goals are hockey-size, kick-ins are used instead of throw-ins, and the ball is smaller and slightly weighted with a foam filling so that it tends to stay on the ground.
The group stages were extremely tight, with first and second positions coming down to goal difference in both groups.
The placing games followed suit, with the 3rd place match ending 2-2 between Westfield Junior School and St Helen’s Primary School and the final finishing 4-4 between joint winners Crosshall Junior School and Somersham Primary School.
Doug Finlayson, HSSP Partnership Manager and School Games Organiser, said, “Congratulations to our joint winners, Crosshall Junior School and Somersham Primary School, and a huge thank you to all the schools for making the event a huge success.
"This is the first year we have run a Futsal event for Year 3/4, and following the feedback throughout the event from the children, staff and parent spectators, it will definitely return in 2023-24."
In the girl's competition, the seven schools were split into two pools, with the competition starting with round-robin fixtures followed by placing matches to determine final positions.
A late withdrawal meant a multi-school team was included, comprised of girls from four different schools to help make up the groups.
Mr Finlayson said: "It was lovely to see the girls interacting with girls from other schools, providing them with the opportunity to build new friendships."
There was plenty of exciting Futsal on show, with Westfield Junior School eventually prevailing as the winners over Somersham Primary School.
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