We're delighted with the recently delivered This Girl Can - Summer Sevens series and the atmosphere it has generated for women’s recreational football.

The 4 week series welcomed 8 teams to Cochrane Park on a Tuesday evening to participate in non-competitive football which included a combination of teams and recreational groups. New Fordley Vixens, Cramlington United Wildcercats, Cullercoats Ladies, Heddon United Ladies, Gateshead Rutherford Ladies, and “Only Need One More United” all contributed to the success of the provision.

“We absolutely loved the Summer Sevens, it was great to get so many ladies from Cramlington United Wildercats sessions playing. The ladies who played ranged from girls in their early 20's to ladies not far off 50 years old. Northumberland FA quickly adjusted fixtures within the series so that teams were more equally matched which was great and made the world of difference to the enjoyment of the series. The commaraderie, enthusiasm and sportsmanship the team had was awesome to see and the ladies are now at a loss on a Tuesday evening and really miss their football fix. It has given so many women the opportunity to play football in a safe and supportive network. We look forward to future events and bringing even more of our Wildercats along. We absolutely loved it and would love to do it again.”

Joanne Jobson – Cramlington United Wildercats

‘We’re an unaffiliated group of ladies who love to play 6-a-side football most Monday evenings and we jumped at the opportunity to link up with like-minded ladies and sign up to the This Girl Can - Summer Sevens. Our officially unofficial team ‘Only Need One More United’ was born and provided us all with a great opportunity to get involved in local recreational football. Each game was filled with plenty laughs and goals, a sense of inclusion and opportunities for us all to connect with local Women’s teams. We’ve even managed to add a couple of new players to our group! We can’t wait for the next one!‘

Amy Paxton – One Need One More United

Lloyd Miller (Football Development Officer - Women and Girls) added: “We saw a space to offer women’s recreational football provision that was both accessible and required a small amount of commitment from women over a 4 week period.

“The three main aims were to; provide an opportunity for players to enjoy non-competitive football in one location, connect players with other like-minded women and finally to provide players without a team or group the opportunity to meet other groups to possibly join their teams or groups. We are now looking ahead towards the upcoming 2022/23 season and are already planning new provision that will use the This Girl Can - Summer Sevens as a vehicle to inform how we plan and deliver future provision to meet the demands of local women wishing to participate in recreational football.”

We encourage players wishing to be a part of our next series to keep a look out across both our website and social media channels in the coming months.

If you have any questions regarding women’s recreational football, please contact Lloyd Miller directly  at lloyd.miller@northumberlandfa.com