In a major boost for girls’ and women’s football in Cornwall, Leeds United Ladies football squad have accepted an invitation from Mousehole AFC to visit West Cornwall over the weekend of 23rd to 25th February.
The visit comes at a time of an unprecedented increase in the number of active participants and teams, providing further evidence that female football is one of the fastest growing sports in the UK.
The Leeds United Ladies will train together with Mousehole’s successful Women’s team on Friday evening (23rd) from 7-8pm at Mounts Bay Academy.
Then on Saturday morning they will host a soccer camp for girls aged 6 to 16 from 9-10am, also at Mounts Bay – all welcome, with a chance to be a mascot for the afternoon match.
Following that, they will play a full-scale game against a Cornwall FA Women’s Representative team at Mousehole’s HQ at Trungle Parc, Paul, on Saturday (24th), kick off at 2:15pm.
The Cornwall FA Women’s side has not played a match since 2015, when the County FA’s 125th anniversary was celebrated with a game against Yeovil Town Ladies. The County squad for the Leeds match will be drawn from players who play for a Cornish side or live in Cornwall, following a series of trials held recently under the watchful eyes of co-managers Vicky Fisher and Beth Willshaw.
Leeds United Ladies, who are an integral part of Leeds United Football Club, compete in the FA National Women’s Premier League Division 1. They are currently in a rich vein of form, with their last three matches all being away and producing two wins – at Chorley and Morecambe – and one draw, at Crewe Alexandra.
The forthcoming event was initiated jointly by Jason Blunt, Mousehole AFC’s Head of Youth and Development, who was until last June manager of Leeds United Under-23s, and locally-based David Haigh, former Managing Director of Leeds United. Blunt has already used his connections with the Yorkshire club to bring a Leeds United Academy team down to Mousehole in early October to mark the launch of Mousehole’s own Academy and also the re-opening of the club’s Trungle Parc ground after extensive improvement works in the summer.
Speaking of the forthcoming Women’s football weekend, Newlyn-born Blunt said: “We want to make this a special weekend – an opportunity to celebrate and promote women’s football – not only showcasing the talents of a top-class team in Leeds United Ladies, but also giving local players the chance to learn from the visitors, and also see how they match up and can aspire to the higher standards set. It will also be a great social occasion, with the Trungle Parc clubhouse open all afternoon on Saturday for food and drink, and continuing with the friendly hospitality and fun during the evening”
Lee Townend, Leeds United Ladies Chairman, said: “Our team has been going from strength to strength since the New Year and we are thrilled with their performance so far this season. The trip to Cornwall will be a fantastic chance for the team to take part in a celebratory weekend and help promote women’s football.”
Mousehole Women team are also an integral part of Mousehole AFC and play in the Cornwall Women’s League, where they are enjoying their best-ever season, with a 100% record in 10 fixtures so far, putting them six points ahead at the top of the League table.
For the Cornwall v Leeds match on Saturday 24th February, admission will be £5 for adults, with free entry for under-16s accompanied by a paying adult. Tickets can be purchased online by visiting the eventbrite website, as follows: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/cornwall-fa-women-v-leeds-united-women-at-mousehole-afc-tickets-42940068902.
First-time visitors to Trungle Parc may wish to note that the ground (postcode TR19 6AZ) is not in Mousehole, but in the village of Paul, which is approached and signposted from the B3315 from Newlyn.
