LISTEN: Hillmen Youngsters Suffer Heartache In Futsal Final

It was a case of close, but no cigar for Glossop North End Community Club's youngsters on Monday night, as the Hillmen were pipped to the Manchester Futsal League title on goal difference.

A showdown with Manchester Futsal Club in the play-off final ended in a nail-biting 3-3 draw. However, Manchester's slender goal difference ensured the Hillmen returned trophyless, but with an invaluable experience that will benefit the players moving forward.

There are now hopes that some of the players will be given an opportunity to progress into Glossop North End’s first team under current manager Stuart Mellish.

The Hillmen boss has witnessed first hand the quality within the futsal squad, as 17-year-old Harry Vennard has made a few appearances for the first team this season.

Head coach Ben Mills is hopeful that similar success will follow in the future. Speaking to Chronicle Sport about the club’s recent history, he said: “We’ve got a really young team that competes in the Manchester Futsal League on Monday nights. The team is made up of under 17 and under 18 players, even though it’s an open age competition. 

“We were disappointed to lose out on goal difference, but it was a great effort from the lads and we’re really proud of them.

“We’ve been playing futsal for a number of years with the same group of players. We started out at Oldham Futsal playing local tournaments. There’s a group called Inspired Futsal, which is run by Russel Fryer, and he organised some leagues as he’s really keen on promoting the sport. There’s also Sala Soccer, which has been running for a number of years, so we’ve had quite a lot of experience and participated in a lot of tournaments. A few years ago, our under 16s were the Derbyshire County Cup winners and were in the East Midlands Finals. Just before Covid we were top of the North West Futsal League, having gone unbeaten.

“Manchester Futsal Club has done a great job in facilitating open age futsal in the area, and that was the competition we took part in.”