On a weekend where the country was gripped by World Cup fever and England proceeded serenely to a showdown Qtr Final with France next weekend, GNP Sports put on a show of their own with a number of fantastic performances and results. Winter weather has well & truly arrived as temperatures plummeted but it didn't deter our youngsters from playing with real determination and no little style & skill!

SATURDAY - BOYS

What a difference a week makes for the GNP Under 7 Lions, who after a big loss last week, played away to Christ the King. Early goals from Attharv, Rajan and Fakhir saw the Lions take the lead by half time. Second half the Lions came out roaring with pace, power and passing. The home team scored a consolation goal but a hat trick from Sahib, a sublime free kick from Veer and a poacher's finish from Rivan saw the Lions come away as emphatic victors.

GNP Under 7 Juniors played Lawford United and what a display by the boys! The Juniors started off really well attacking the ball and their efforts paid off with a goal from Agam before half time. Second half the opposition upped their attacking game and got a goal back. However Angad and league debutant, Kavin, grabbed goals for us to reinstate the lead. The boys did well to defend the lead with Dhanveer and Yuvraj in goal and came away with the victory and a huge morale boost for the lads after several challenging weeks.

Under 7 Tigers hosted Cov Jag Youth Rovers in a spell of fine form. The squad was depleted with 2 players missing and another couple soldiering on through illness. Despite the circumstances the players gelled superbly to demonstrate fantastic teamwork. There was a hat trick from Aryan which seems to be a regular occurence, such is his quality! Mohamed was in sublime form grabbing a couple of goals and then put on a masterclass in defence demonstrating great anticipation - this all round ability bagged him another Player of the Match award! Pravir and Balraj were well placed to find the net before Arveer finished proceedings off with a great solo run which found the top corner from a tight angle. The opposition had little to cheer in the 1st half however did manage a few attempts in the 2nd half, to which Archie was well up to the task. A clean sheet and several goals meant the boys continued their fine form as we head into the mid-season break.

Under 7 Pumas faced Hillmorton Juniors Dragons on Saturday. A slow start in the first half allowed the Dragons to take the lead. However a handball from the Dragons allowed the Pumas a penalty, which Arvind stroked in confidently to equalise. We had a strong defence from Ife, Kyle and Ajeet who all delivered some great clearances. Jaiden, Harvey and Zorawar all showed great enthusiasm and energy throughout the game but just couldn't quite get the goal to finish. Despite Brody and Ajeet's brave performances in goals the boys eventually succumbed to the Dragons.

Under 8 Tigers played at home against Lillington Magpies. Shawn Olarinoye continued his impressive goalscoring streak, grabbing all four goals for the Tigers. The pick of the goals was an incisive move starting from the back with Sohan feeding Raqeeb on the right, who crossed brilliantly for Shawn to finish. There were impressive performances across the pitch as the Tigers continued to build on their good form this season.

GNP Under 10 Tigers hosted a good Leamington Brakes team in the Mid Warwickshire League. GNP began the game strong but conceded against the run of play to an own goal. The boys didn’t lose their nerve and stuck to the tactics discussed before the game. Deservingly GNP scored a class equaliser before half time. The first 15 mins of the 2nd half was probably some of GNP's best football this season. The closing down, 1-2 touch passing and driving forward was brilliant! A selection of scorers was great to see: Armaan, Zoravar, Yousaf, Sarvan, Harjan and Jaydon completed a brilliant day. It was frankly impossible to choose a player of the match but it was awarded to debutant Aaron Dhaliwal. Only one training session, he arrived early at 8:30am, listened attentively to the instructions and carried them out to a tee. The lads took to him immediately, so well done Aaron and we all look forward to even more fabulous performances!

SATURDAY - GIRLS

The GNP Under 8 Panthers arrived in Daventry with confidence looking to build on their strong performance last week. The hosts, Daventry Panthers, started the match strongly looking to break down the GNP defence, who held firm. Attacking play from both teams allowed Roop to break from the middle of the pitch to score the first goal. Elizabeth worked tirelessly going and back & forward making tackles and shooting at goal. A lack of concentration allowed Daventry to pull a goal back. Then the opposition rotated the team and Jodh came on looking for more goals to add from last week. She was quickly rewarded with an opportunity, taking GNP to the end of the 1st half with a marginal lead. GNP Panthers started the 2nd half with Poppy stepping out of goal to play in a forward role, with Aish taking on the keeper role. Jodh provided a great pass to Poppy allowing her to get on the scoresheet, but she did not stop there, taking an assist from Rhea and then slotting in a 3rd for her first ever hat-trick! Aish made some crucial saves amazing the parents and coaches alike. Then energy levels started to drop, allowing Daventry to pull back two more goals, but the GNP Panthers continued to attack with Roop scoring the final goal of the game. Well done for the effort and energy shown across the team, towards another good result!

Under 9 Panthers came up against Leafield Athletic for the first time. You could see the girls were up for it as early as the warm up. Tino had her second stint in goal but was only called into action once in the 1st period, which saw a slender lead at half time courtesy of Ariana. 2nd half Suvreet went into goal for the first time but was also called into action once and was equal to it. We saw further goals from Tino and Ariana with Avneet providing a few assists. Divjot was solid at the back as usual with Aapti and Aakriti showing spirit upfront. Well done girls!

Under 11 Panthers travelled to Bournville and produced yet another strong defensive performance to build on for the girls. Dhanroop made her presence known to the opposition, harrying and chasing them down, putting in timely tackles, winning the ball and running at the opposition on several occasions. Another solid performance by Ekham in the centre of defence who made numerous clearances to keep the opposition from adding to their tally. Shot stopper, Dilraj, as always, made some impressive saves contributing to a goalless score at half time. Isla and Mankirat showed industry, chasing and putting in tackles all over the pitch. A couple of lapses in positional awareness cost the girls 2nd half, but these are things that can be worked on. Pleasingly, the girls kept on going and never gave up. All in all, the girls are continuing to show strength and resolve and the Panthers supporters must be looking forward to the teams hard work continuing to pay off.

SUNDAY - BOYS

Under 9 Tigers fixture away to a very good Cov Sphinx team provided drama galore for those watching on. GNP started off on the back foot, with Sphinx dominating and quickly racing in to a big lead. Despite the shock, the Tigers demonstrated great spirit, togetherness and maturity, talking between themselves to resolve the early issues and encouraged each other for the remainder of the game. The boys finally got going and Ricky grabbed two quick goals of their own to half the deficit. This really galvanised the Tigers who scored again through Reece and kept pressing for more goals up to the half time break. Despite a calmer, more even start to the 2nd half, the Tigers then again upped the tempo and managed to score a great equaliser from Jaylan. Sphinx then had a dominant spell of their own with the Tigers clinging on thanks to some outstanding saves from young Amar. The Tigers responded again playing out from the back and through to Ricky who ran powerfully in to the box and slotted home from a tight angle for his hat trick and the seemingly decisive goal. Alas not, Sphinx forced a succession of corners and scored to equalise the game again, but in the dying moments, a fine move culminated in a superb pass from Jaylan which released Ricky, who motored in to the box and struck the inside of the post before the ball trickled over the line for a dramatic winner! Credit to both teams for a great footballing performance & spectacle, and to GNP for their never-say-die attitude.

Under 10 Lions were away to Southam United. Lions started slowly being pressured on a very muddy pitch for the first 10 minutes. A good link up between Jaydon and Zoravar ultimately provided a simple tap in for Abdul to give the Lions the lead. Southam equalised within minutes however Lions counter-attacked with a goal from Zoravar providing a narrow lead into the 2nd half. The Lions started stronger after the break and were soon in full control once they made a further breakthrough from Uday. Then a great run by Jaydon on the right wing ended with him crossing the ball to Uday who finished clinically first time.
A great performance by all of the Lions, with a special mention to Uday who was the PotM for his two goals.

Under 10 Pumas hosted a strong and physical Coventrians side. The absence of vital players did not affect the performance of the Pumas, with the boys putting in their best performance of the season so far. They created many 1st half chances with some fantastic passing in midfield, working the ball into the opposition penalty box but, unfortunately could not find the back of the net. Coventrians attackers put plenty of pressure on the Pumas back line but the defence of Ryan, Haris and Ibraheem proved more than a match for most of the game. Coventrians did manage to score their goals in the 1st half as a result of simple individual GNP mistakes which were punished severely. The Pumas replied with a strong start to the 2nd half, looking for that all important goal to try and get the team back into the game. Despite having plenty of the ball they were unable to create the chances required. The second half was very evenly matched between the 2 teams with Rayan replacing Arjun in goal and making several great saves.

GNP Under 11 Tigers visited bogey team St Finbarrs, looking for their 1st victory against these opponents in 4 attempts. The 1st half didn't go to plan as the boys stood off the physically imposing Finbarrs midfield/attack, allowing them to break through at will. Fortunately a combination of last ditch defending, good goalkeeping from Dhairya and poor shooting kept the game scoreless at half time. The 2nd half saw the Tigers respond brilliantly to the HT coaching instructions to snap into the tackles and aim to intercept the passes into midfield/attack, led by the defensive triangle of Aarun, Harman B & Iklil, our Player of the Match. This gave GNP dominance in possession and far more goal threat. On 43 mins, Ayden ghosted in to tap in a trademark goal from a measured Saavun cross and 8 mins later Saavun scored one of his own from outside the box after good work by GNP down the right. A hard fought & gutsy clean sheet secured the victory, their 3rd in a row, and a sweet one for the team and their supporters!

Under 11 Lions were away to Firefighters Rangers this week. Disappointingly, the Lions were again riddled with absences with half the squad unavailable for selection. With only seven players available to compete in 9v9, the Lions inevitably succumbed to another defeat conceding three in the first half and two more in the second, with Rajan getting on the scoresheet again with the Lions only goal of the game. Battling performances from all the team given the circumstances and had the chances also to make it a closer game but were unfortunate. Special mentions to Kartikey and Akalbir who shared goalkeeping duties in the absence of the Lions regular stopper and Milad for his tireless and battling display in the middle of the park!

Under 12 Tigers vs Rugby Borough Eagles (Final Score 1-0). Finally a positive result for the boys and well deserved too. Some real quality football played today, creating some fantastic chances but again just could not finish it off, until the last minute of the game where some great link up play by Nav was finished off by Anesu. All the boys should be proud of their performance today and a special shout out to Aryan, our goalkeeper, for being named PotM for his fabulous saves, coming out quickly and effectively inside & outside his box.

After conceding two injury time goals for two weeks running, the GNP Sports Under 14s were determined to take all three points against Alvis in the local derby. GNP started off quickly and should have been 1 up after a great corner. Alvis started to take control of the game in the 2nd quarter and should have really taken the lead but it remained 0-0 at half time. 2nd half brought a change of formation which worked and brought a goal for Dylan. Zaid then doubled the lead with his first of the season. Karam then added a third with two minutes to go, also his first of the season. Some of the football played by GNP was a pleasure to watch today and they thoroughly deserved the win.