A momentous weekend, including a league promotion, a tournament win and some tremendous individual and team performances across the board! Well done to everyone involved in a glorious weekend of football!

SATURDAY - GIRLS

GNP Under 12 Panthers faced Coundon Cockerels, continuing their recent positive form. Orna and Harsimrat shared goalkeeping duties for each half, with Orna creating opportunities throughout the 2nd half once she was out in the field. Avani was strong as ever in defence but also took her chance upfield. Other notable players in this match were Jah'Dae, Harper and Anaya, all relentlessly running down the ball to pressurise opposition. Although the Panthers lost, their performance has greatly improved since the last time they faced the same opposition.

Under 13 Panthers - Following last weeks fantastic 2-0 win which secured the Panthers finishing 7th place in the league in their debut season, came a final away game against top of the league Sporting Markfield. The girls fought bravely on a fast 3G pitch on the hottest day of the year, but ended up losing 7-0. The girls battled hard all game with a "never give up" attitude which will give them confidence going into next season

SATURDAY - BOYS

Under 7 Tigers played against Alvis in a home game. The boys had a cracking start with 2 goals in quick succession from Arjun and Arvind. Alvis fought back and created a lead from which the boys battled to catch up. The boys showed great skill with lovely passes and stellar attempts at goal. The boys had a blip midway through the first half but were able to form a stronger united team in the second half. Some fantastic free kicks taken and powerful shots fired, including a cracking shot from midfield by Ajaib. Gurshaan added to the scoreline in the 2nd half, unfortunately it was not enough. Kurren was POTM for his consistent effort in all positions; a driving force for the team. Well done boys cracking effort!

The Under 7 Lions were up against a very well organised Alvis Eagles in an away game. It was a great effort by the goalkeeper Balraj between posts, aided by strong performances in the defensive line by Sam and Harnam, which limited Alvis to two 1st half goals. 2nd half saw Lions put up a greater fight with Jadin opening the goal account. In the end the Lions fell just short and conceded another goal despite putting up a great challenge. Overall a greatly improved performance by Lions on the day against an opposition which dominated them last time around.

Under 7 Pumas were at home against Lillington Juniors. It was a tough match against a good team who were well drilled. The heat clearly played a part as the boys never really got out of the starting gates.

Under 8 Pumas played at home against Hillmorton. The 1st half started with great passing and movement between the team. The Pumas dominated possession and had many shots but struggled to find the net. The 2nd half continued with a strong attacking display until Harvey broke the deadlock with a strike into the corner of the net. POTM Ajeet carried the ball forward to fire a second only a minute later. This was followed up by a 2nd from Ajeet, with a great run in behind the opposition defence and to volley the ball into the net. Great team effort, a very solid performance from the Pumas.

The Under 8 Tigers were up against Coventrians. Tigers started very much on the front foot. However they conceded a soft goal against the run of play. 2nd half they started well but once more conceded another soft goal. They continued valiantly in the heat and Eesa was clinical in front of goal, dispatching a great opportunity presented by Arveer. As the Tigers pushed on to score again they were left open at the back and conceded once more. Jovan however wasn’t about to give up and put away a fantastic effort from the left. All in all a game the Tigers should’ve won if it wasn’t for some very soft goals conceded. One more game left until the end of the season and the boys are determined to make it a positive one!

Under 8 Lions played away to Rugby Borough. Game was pretty cagey and the Lions were undone by a penalty in the first half. Rajan played with real bravery in the first half but we went down again to a set piece after Rugby Borough smashed in a great free kick in the second half. Fakhir had a couple of chances to score but it just wasn't the Lions' day.

Under 8 Jaguars played against CTK reds. GNP started off well however the opposition were too strong and took a healthy lead from which the Jaguars could not recover. Jaguars scored 2 goals on the day but it wasn't to be enough.

SUNDAY - BOYS

GNP Under 15s played Alvis at home knowing a win would clinch promotion. GNP started quickly and took a deserved lead after 11 minutes through Nana. Three more goals in a prolific eight minute spell effectively meant game over. Two goals from Archie, with one coming directly from a corner and one from Tom meant the boys went into half time 4-0 up. Challenge for the second half was not to concede. Further goals in the second half from Zaid, Ethan and a bicycle kick from Archie who completed his hat trick. Special mention to Ashraf who was unlucky not to score today He ‘scored' an absolute beauty in the final seconds only for it to be ruled offside. Final score 7-0, the Under 15s promoted and finishing the weekend top of the league! With three games left, GNP now have a great opportunity to win the league at home next Sunday - a fantastic achievement and full deserved!

GNP Under 11 Tigers were playing at the Khalsa FC tournament in Leamington on Sunday. With 5 mini games planned over just 2 hrs it was going to be a tough task in the strong sunshine. The boys came good with some really fine displays. From the 5 games, GNP won 3 drew 2 and lost 1. Goal of the tournament was arguably scored by Harjan Bansal. Against a tough opponent, GNP broke some fine passes in between the lines and then a sublime cross was smashed in by Harjan. Some very good performances throughout and as always a stand out performance through all 5 games by Capt Prabh Dhillon.
Special mentions to Eashan Chahal & Aaron Dhaliwal for soldiering through a tough morning after picking up knocks and putting on some fine displays. Well done Gs. A nice way to close out the season!

GNP Tigers Under 13s vs Rugby Lions… An unenviable last game of the season at home to the Division A leaders and an incredible team. The boys started very well and having good possession, which paid off with a great goal by Hawon. Rugby responded 10mins after with a goal and scored again, but the boys battled hard and kept the scoreline at 2-1 at half time. Second half the boys started off very strong and playing some great football but the superior fitness and skill of Rugby showed and they score several goals to extend their lead, but Tigers responded with 2 late goals by Aayan and Anesu. It was not the result we wanted for the last game of the season but proud of the boys for how they played

Under 12 Tigers visited Vision FC Masters in what was to be the penultimate league match of the season. After taking a hiding in the reverse fixture (final score 8-0), and coming off the back of a hugely successful Tour last weekend, the players and coaching staff were motivated to put in a strong performance. It was backs to the wall early on but the centre back pairing of Enoch and Harman Sangha stood strong to deny the Vision attackers time and time again. From a defensive corner on 9 mins, Saavun made a strong headed clearance which set Ayden free on the counter attack. Ayden bounded forwarded and hit a screamer of a shot from around 25 yards which flew high past the keeper into the back of the net! The boys' confidence was sky high and they grew into the game, as Vision resorted to numerous long balls. 1-0 up at the break, the boys started well in the 2nd half but the game was disrupted by a nasty incident which saw both teams reduced to 8 players with a red card apiece. After the incident Vision started to come back into things and they equalised when GNP couldnt clear after Otis' initial save. GNP had chances to regain the lead from several brilliant corners from Saavun but couldnt get the final touch required. With around 5-6 mins to go, the Vision full back strode forward and hit a ferocious rocket from around 30 yards which flew over the helpless Otis in goals. A cruel turn of events for the Tigers who were magnificent today, with everything thrown at them. Heads up boys!

Under 12 Lions visited in form Firefighters who have had a massive turnaround follow some mid season recruitment. It proved to be a difficult match following 2 late withdrawals before the game. In the first half GNP were outskilled and outrun by confident opponents as Firefighters raced into a 3-0 lead. 2nd half was much improved with Harshaan & Milad as consistent as ever and Filip awarded PotM for being solid at the back. Jasraj grabbed his 3rd goal of the season with another effort from outside the box but it proved to only be a consolation as Firefighters triumphed 6-1.

Under 11s Pumas were at home against Atherstone Hurricanes. Bright start by the Pumas playing some good passing football but unable to convert their chances. Loss of concentration through various stages cost the Pumas today, Atherstone did well to take their chances and win comfortably.

GNP Under 10 Pumas vs Lillington. A game dominated by the Pumas playing some great football and scoring a flurry of goals. Goals from Kian (2) Maaven (2) Ziyyad (2), Faris and Shivan made it a convincing win. Pumas conceded a late goal towards the end of the game. A great opportunity to see players play in different positions and still put on a strong performance!

Under 10 Lions were at home to Christ The King Juniors. GNP started the game well and took the lead in the opening minutes with a strike from Ryan McDermott. GNP kept pushing forward but could not find a 2nd goal. Christ the King got back into the game after some sloppy defending and it was all square at the break. 2nd half was again pretty even, but a couple of mistakes from GNP led to CTK taking a 2 goal lead. GNP then started to get back on top in the game and pulled a goal back, once again through Ryan. At 3-2, GNP went looking for the equaliser but missed a couple of great chances. CTK then scored two further goals at the end of the game, but credit to both teams for a good battle, in energy-sapping conditions.

GNP Under 10 Tigers were at home to Sphinx Yellow - always a good game between the teams and this was no different. Tigers started strongly playing some fantastic football & opened the scoring through Ricky. Tigers failed to capitalise on several chances, including a penalty which was saved by the Sphinx keeper. Sphinx came back into the game and we saw an exchange of goals which left things level at the break. 2nd half saw the same pattern with end to end football leading to a further exchange of goals with Ricky completing his hat trick! Late on Sphinx edged ahead & the warm weather saw GNP tiring, but kept going and put in everything they had to getting an equaliser. This created spaces at the back which Sphinx exploited to increase their lead and clinch the result. Nevertheless a brilliant performance by the boys and some lovely football at times.

Under 9 Lions overcame a very good Christ The King Rovers Green team. Before the game the other team were confident thinking they were in for a easy game after a high scoreline last time out. However the GNP boys upset the odds with a brilliant team performance by every player, resulting in a tight victory. With one game left in the season next week, this calendar year has only seen the boys lose 1 league game, which is remarkable, bearing in mind this is a totally new team.

Under 9 Tigers were up against Lillington away from home. Tigers struggled to create chances in the first half and were punished after some errors in their own box. In the second half they started to create more but lacked the cutting edge in the final third, it was a day of misplaced passes and missed opportunities. Only goal coming from Kyan, PotM went to Birat who tried to play positively in an unfamiliar midfield role.

GNP Super 6s played their 1st ever away match with a visit to Nuneaton Borough. The squad of 6 players (Rhys, Joban, Dhillan, Aron, Rayan & Tobias) put in a tremendous shift in hot conditions. The style of football in the 1st half also showed the speed of learning the boys have put into practice with unselfish passing and attacking from wide areas. Joban got on the scoresheet twice in the 1st half with good finishes and the prolific Aron scored at regular intervals to notch 4 by the end of the game. All of the other players made great contributions with Rhys probably edging player of the match honours with his incredible energy levels working forward and back!