By Isle of Wight Observer
School teams took to the field in the hope of winning silverware in the first round of the IW Primary School Football Finals.
The opening fixture of the round saw Newport take on Gurnard in the final of the U-9 Boys’ Cup. Two goals from Newport’s Oliver Curling wasn’t enough for victory, as goals from Isaac Scott (2), and an own goal, gave Gurnard a 3-2 victory.
Lanesend took on Queensgate in the final of the U-10 Boys’ Cup, where goals from Queensgate’s Ruben Legg and Jesse Ruddock gave the East Cowes school a 2-0 win.
Carisbrooke and The Bay then locked horns in the U-11 Girls’ Cup final. Carisbrooke’s Annabelle Oliver gave Carisbrooke the lead, before The Bay’s Lottie Deakin equalised. With extra-time unable to separate the sides, the match went to penalties, with Carisbrooke coming out on top to lift the trophy.
The next game saw Queensgate playing Barton in the U-11 Boys’ Cup. In a strong performance, Queensgate scored four goals without reply through Denys Yershov, Tom Lawbor and Jonny Welch (2), to win 4-0. Barton played in the U-9 Girls’ Cup final against Greenmount in the following game. As the whistle blew it was still 0-0 resulting in extra time when, after winning a tackle in the opposition penalty area, Barton’s Daisy Merret fired home to give Barton a 1-0 win.
In the U-9 Girls’ Rural League final, Bembridge took on Nettlestone, who took the lead through Piper Thwaites. This didn’t last long, with Bembridge’s Amelia O’Neil firing home Izzy Portsmore’s excellent cross to make it 1-1. It was Nettlestone who sealed the win, with Lois Fell scoring to give Nettlestone victory.
In the final of the U-11 Boys’ Rural Cup, Bembridge took on Nettlestone again. Nettlestone controlled the game in the final stages to retain the title for a second year in a row.
The last final of the round saw Godshill take on Newchurch in the final of the U-11 Girls’ Rural League. Neither side managed to score even in extra-time, so the final went to penalties, when Godshill’s goalkeeper, Evelyn Bartlett, made two excellent saves, with Godshill winning 2-1 to retain the trophy.