The APIS U20 girls futsal team is made up of some U13's, and the rest U16's. There is not a single girl above the age of 15 on the team, and of our starting five, three are 12 years old, including our goalie!
No one thought we stood a chance against the powerful Grace team in the semi final, as they have been undefeated for the last two years in U20 futsal.
But our girls team played extremely tough defense and managed to score a goal early in the game. From then on, they were fearlessly blocking shots, smartly deflecting passes, playing physical with the bigger and older girls, and not giving the highly skilled Grace players any space to operate. With the help of some key saves from Jasmine, APIS hung on for the HUGE upset victory, shocking the fans, the other schools, and especially the Grace coach and players.
Unfortunately, the APIS team ran out of gas and couldn't create any offense against NIS. Former APIS futsal star Mod scored the only goal NIS would need to win the U20 Futsal championship.
Still, the girls made up for their lack of size and skill, showing everyone that effort, team play and heart are the most valuable things in an athlete, not only natural ability and talent.
Great work girls!
Happy to hear that the girls' hard work and team spirit paid off - even though you didn't make the championship - but they are champions nonetheless. Congratulations to all of you.
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Mum
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