The in-form Under 13 Panthers (pictured) were up against Sutton United in the 2nd Round of the Open Cup, looking to cause a big upset against a team 2 divisions higher. Panthers were on the front foot for the first 15 minutes with plenty of chances to open the scoring. Sutton however with their first attack managed to score. Panthers kept pressing however & scored a well taken goal by Lizzie before half time. Second half saw 2 quick goals by the opposition and this took GNP by surprise. The girls came back strong though and didn’t give in. Rose stepped up to convert a penalty which spurred the Panthers on. They kept on pushing; against the odds and with virtually the last kick of the game, Lizzie grabbed another to make it 3-3 which led to a penalty shoot-out, which sadly finished 4-2 to Sutton and the Panthers were out. They knew they’d given it their all; whilst disappointed the girls held their heads up high for a tremendous effort.

The Under 10 Panthers delivered a remarkable performance against a strong, pacy Leamington Lions side. Playing the entire match with a player down, all of the girls gave their all to the game, culminating in a superb victory. In the first half, the girls fought back after going a goal down, with solid defence from Lily backed up wel by Aish. Prema demonstrated excellent energy on the wing, with a close chance at goal from a corner. An outstanding goal from Elizabeth, set up by Roop, levelled the teams at half time. Going into the second half, the Panthers continued to persevere with relentless runs down the wing from Anya. Roop scored from a corner, skilfully delivered by Lily, and Anya followed this with a fantastic goal of her own. Aish's exceptional efforts throughout the match culminated in an assist for a final goal from Elizabeth to conclude the game. An impressive display of determination from all the girls!

Under 11 Panthers overcame Sutton United in a heated encounter at Finham Park. Suvreet scored twice and Avneet added the other with assist contributions from Avneet and Sheena. Another good performance from the girls.

The Under 8 Panthers fought hard against a spirited Solihull Moors team. Unfortunately, the result did not go our way, however, the girls played with positivity and showed a lot of grit. There was some wonderful defending from Tanaya and Siya displayed some good runs and plenty of determination. We had no substitutions to use and therefore, extra praise is due to all who played. Most importantly, everyone enjoyed the experience and are looking forward to the games ahead!

Under 14 Panthers were at home in the cup against Coventry City Girls. The Panthers found it hard against a team who play in the Premier division and were superior all over the pitch. The Panthers fought all game but lost heavily.

SATURDAY - BOYS

GNP Tigers Under 12s played away vs Wellesbourne Wanderers, seeking their first win of the season. GNP flew out of the blocks scoring within the first few mins via a great solo run and goal by Josiah. They followed up with a second just before half time through Muhammad going in 2-1. 2nd half GNP really pushed on with a further two goals through Harjan and Josiah. After conceding a few late goals GNP finished 4-3 winners. Player of the match - Muhammad, including his first ever goal in a competitive game.

Under 7 Lions played against Hillmorton Colts on Saturday. The away team started with an early goal, which saw the Lions hit back fiercely in a matter of moments, with Dhillan scoring to bring GNP level. Theo made some amazing saves when the match was level, to keep the Lions in the game. Lions started to find their feet with Luca grabbing his first goal of the season. With a few changes at half time Theo came out of goals to play right wing and also scored his first goals of the season. Elliott was a rock in defence, making some great tackles & interceptions. Late into the 2nd half Dhillan went on and completed his hat-trick, earning GNP Lions their first victory in grassroots football! So proud of the boys effort, passion and resilience, concluding with a fully deserved result!

In a thrilling encounter, Under 8 Tigers narrowly lost away to Cov Sphinx in a closely contested match. Tigers started the game well but unfortunately conceded an early goal, GNP responded with two well taken goals from Gurshaan. However lapses in concentration in defence led to a flurry of goals for Coventry Sphinx. Tigers fought back with Neal and Arjun scoring to level proceedings going into the last quarter. The hosts piled on the pressure, hitting the woodwork a few times and finally got the winner in a frantic end-to-end finale. Neal was the PotM with his impressive display and caused the opposition many problems, capping off his performance with a brilliant strike.

Under 8 Pumas played away against the Rugby Hawks. The match kept swinging one way to the other, and there some fabulous defending and goalkeeping displays on both sides. In the end, the Pumas suffered a narrow loss, conceding two late, unlucky goals. We didn’t have any substitutes so it was a tough match for the boys, but they all did so well. Louie scored a great hat trick, Dayal was brilliant in goals, and a special mention for an excellent defensive display from Mavin. Overall, all of boys played so well as a team, and it bodes well for the rest of the season.

Under 8 Lions hosted Alvis on the 3G pitch, and came unstuck against a side they have competed closely with in the past. Despite goals from Arthur, Leo & Sam, it was never really the Lions day and the scoreline was decisive in favour of Alvis throughout.

Under 8 Jaguars had an interesting game against Racing Club Warwick. A close first half got away from the Jaguars as Warwick benefitted from some long distance shooting. It was a quick start for the Jaguars taking the lead through Mithun's initiative of taking a kick-in quickly and getting a shot off which the goalkeeper couldn't keep out. Warwick hit back to equalise before a counter by Oryn dribbling the ball up the pitch assisted Bobby who finished well to take the lead. Unfortunately Warwick pegged the score back and extended the lead through some long shooting. Further goals from Varun and Theo made the game interesting enough but the final scoreline did flatter Warwick. Unlucky Jaguars!

SUNDAY - BOYS

Under 14 Tigers vs Atherstone. Draw 2-2. The boys have been on a good run and started off great, scoring in the very first minute with an excellent goal by Bilawal. Then the boys eased off and created chances but were unable to convert into a goal. Atherstone punished the Tigers by putting away 2 chances clinically to grab the lead. Tigers Keeper Aryan then went on to make a number of great saves to keep his team in the game and earn the PotM award. Thankfully Hawon was able to grab an equalising goal and it could have been a victory but for a contentious offside decision which denied Aayan and left the game level.

Under 13 Tigers hosted Rugby Borough Colts, the team 1 place below them in the league at the start of the day. It was expected to be a close game but the Tigers had other ideas. Despite missing 2 key players, the boys showed a level of clinicality we haven't see for a while in the 1st half. Arjun set the tone by latching onto a loose pass and firing home from the edge of the box on 4 mins. Soon after, Saavun's searching through ball was diverted into the net by the Rugby defender for an og. A great run and cutback from the right by Aaron D saw Arjun fire home his second before substitute Daniel came on and fed a delicious through ball into Aaron D who slotted home the 4th himself. Just before half time a corner from the left saw GNP the first to every loose ball and it was Saavun who emphatically volleyed home from Aarun S' assist. Half time score of 5-0 allowed some positional changes in the 2nd half, but this saw GNP lose their balance and Rugby took advantage with 2 well taken goals, but the result was never really in doubt as GNP added another 3pts to continue their climb up the table. PotM went to Ehan for an excellent all round display in midfield!

Under 13 Lions made the short trip to Coventry United White with 5 players unavailable so were expecting a difficult morning with no subs. It looked to be heading that way with United grabbing 2 well taken goals for an early lead. However the Lions started to find their feet with some good passing combinations, particularly down the left through Milad, Aahil, Arjun & Mohammed. Increased pressure forced a corner. Mohammed and Aaron worked a nice short corner routine before Aaron pulled the ball across for centre back Dominik to arrive on cue and curl the ball high into the net with his right foot. GNP tails were up and they went on to have all the play for the remainder of the 1st half. The combinations down the left worked again as Aahil broke into the box from midfield - he put in a dangerous cross which the Cov Utd defender could only divert into his own goal to tie things up at 2-2. A similar move saw a similar deflection but this time it crashed against the post off the United defender! 2nd half chances came and went for both sides, with Harman displaying some confident and aggressive goalkeeping for GNP, but nobody could add to the scoreline as both teams took a point each from the game. A good performance from Aahil today in midfield but PotM deservedly went to Dom, who showed some excellent 1v1 defending as well as scoring a key goal to help the team back into the game!

Under 11 Lions were up against Rugby Borough Cobras away from home. From the very first whistle, the Lions took control. Chance after chance passed and the Cobras keeper was once again in inspired form, thwarting the Lions in several 1v1 positions. The Lions managed to break the deadlock through Sehaj. Against the run of play, Rugby were awarded a penalty after a clumsy challenge and somehow it was all square at half time. This was the same pattern as the cup game between the 2 sides 3 weeks ago, which the Lions lost on penalties after missing a hatful of chances! However, the 2nd half, the Lions came out with fire in their bellies and started to convert their chances. Further goals followed from Philipos, Athrv, Ryan, Kyle, Rajan and Sehaj got his 2nd goal to complete a comprehensive win. The Lions have been threatening this type of scoreline for several weeks, but had been missing gilt edged chances. Man of the match went to Rajan, for a dominant display in midfield, capped off by a wonderful solo goal, wriggling through a number of challenges and finding the back of the net.

Under 11 Tigers were in action in the league at home to Bedworth United. Tigers started off brightly and took the lead through Rohan tapping in after a cross from Reece. Bedworth got back in to the game and then had a penalty to go in front. Tigers chasing the game gave it everything and pushed and pushed but Bedworth played on the break and scored a further few goals in the second half to increase the lead. Great effort from the Tigers who kept going. Well done boys. MOTM was Malachi who was asked to play in a very different position and was absolutely brilliant!

Under 11 Pumas - no update

Under 10 Tigers - no update

Under 9 Tigers were up against Exhall Colts. Evenly matched for the first 10 minutes before Josiah opened up the Tigers account with a brilliant trademark run down the right wing. Josiah was involved in the next goal with a fantastic assist for Rajan to score. 2nd half saw a clinical goal from Eesa and wonderful wizardry by Arveer who scored with his left foot. Jacob pulled out a couple of fully stretched saves and looked safe as ever in goal. Salman had the opportunity to move further up the pitch and got himself a goal with his persistency. Well done to Joban, however, for his Player of the Match performance; not only scoring a goal but more so his strength on / off the ball and also looking for more passes to bring team mates into play.