Pilgrim Academy Girls make football debut

The football team for Pilgrim Academy Girls have recently made their football season debut in the ESFA Cup.

Back row L-R: Brooke Swift, Summer Mai-Parker, Mia Cawley, Esme Crockett, Abigail Bever. Front row L-R: Layla Boyd, Elissa Ritchie, Amber Boyd.

English Schools’ Football Association placed the football team in Group B, where they played competitive games against Wybers, Humberston C of E, Enfield, Elliston and Stallingborough.

During the first game of the tournament, which they played against Stallingborough, Elissa Ritchie scored the only goal of the game, which saw Pilgrim squander many chances despite excellent build-up play.

Continuing this form, Captain Mia Cawley scored the winning goal in the following game against Humberston C of E. The third game saw Pilgrim fall to their first defeat of the season to Wybers, after a hard-fought game against the eventual winners of the tournament.

The team showed great resilience to bounce back, after Amber Boyd came off the bench to secure a 1-0 victory in the next game. The final group game saw the team play a goalless draw thanks to a superb goalkeeping display by Elissa Ritchie, who made many crucial saves to keep the team in the game.

This set of fantastic results led to Pilgrim finishing in second place in Group B!

One final match was played against the second place finished in Group A, William Barcroft, which saw the team play out another goalless draw, resulting in a third-place finish overall. The team played brilliantly throughout the tournament and showed great togetherness and team spirit.

Manager J. Gibbon commented: “The girls should be proud of all the effort they put into every single game. The improvement from the previous year is clear for all to see.” Captain Mia Cawley was quick to celebrate her team’s achievements on the drive home, highlighting positive contributions from all of the players.