Whilst a handful of games were beaten by the rain, most of our teams were in action with League Cup matches seeing our U14 and U16 boys successfully through to Round 2, our U13 Girls moving to the top of their league and four teams scoring double figures in their fixtures this weekend! Catch up on all the action below!

SATURDAY - GIRLS

Under 13 Panthers continued their impressive start to the season with a resounding 9-1 victory over Sutton Coldfield Town Juniors. With a full squad available for the first time in the season and Enya making her debut, the Panthers were always going to be hard to beat, so this proved. Enya scored a debut goal, Mankirat scored 6 and Hannah 2. There were some great assists from Anaya, Lizzie and Rose who have become vital in the midfield. Defensively, Avani and Ekham continue to be rock solid with some great assistance by Maya and Dhanroop.

The 2nd match of the season versus Coundon Court ended well again for the Under 10 Panthers. Strong pressing and a hungry attack delivered a swift first goal for Elizabeth, set up skillfully by Jodh. The Coundon goalie made a series of fantastic saves, but the Panthers were relentless. A goalmouth scramble ended in Elizabeth's 2nd.  The girls started the 2nd half well,  Poppy secure in goal, supported by great defence from Aish, Jodh and Lily. Keeper-turned-striker Roop became a double goalscorer, the first set up by Anya, and her 2nd came after good work from Elizabeth. Great work Panthers!

SATURDAY - BOYS

Under 7 Tigers were away to Coventry Phoenix Blitz this week and they put on a performance which proved too much for Blitz. The boys gave it their all, showing so much energy across the pitch making it difficult for Coventry Phoenix. Rayan's defending was yet again incredible. They passed the ball well and battled really hard which created many chances. Goals from Aron (4), Joban (4), Taran (1), Sahib (1) and Tobias (1). Overall very impressive, well done Tigers.

Under 7 Lions played their last evaluation game against Panjab Athletic. Outstanding start with 3 goals from Dhillan (2) and Kiaan (1), all within the first 5 minutes of the match! Scores were level going into the second half, with a flip in fortunes in the last 10 minutes. Great defending and tackling seen by Elliot, Leo and Luca. Dhillan covered every inch of the pitch throughout, alongside Theo, who made some outstanding saves. The strongest performance as a newly formed team was seen today, with some fantastic resilience and a never-say-die attitude from start to finish.

Under 8 Tigers had a day to remember as they cruised to a dominant win over local rivals Alvis Eagles. The match was a spectacle of great finishing and teamwork, and sheer determination from the young players. The game started like a game of basketball, Gurshaan grabbed a sublime hat trick again but Alvis were giving GNP problems and took the lead in an end to end contest. Via some tactical interventions, GNP regained control of the game, showcasing composure on the ball. The Tiger's defense was solid, passing was crisp, their movement was fluid, and their finishing was clinical. Neal hit an expertly taken freekick from the halfway line. Both Kurren and Ajaib bagged a brace with well taken finishes and PotM Bishoy came to the party with an outstanding 2nd half hat trick to complete the rout.

Under 8 Jaguars played their final evaluation game away against Coundon Court . The game started brightly with Mithun opening the scoring after some great passing between Varun, Isaac & Stan. Shaan made a couple of great saves before  Mithun scored again. Coundon then got three goals back before Theo , Bobby & Oryn were all denied. Oryn then scored a great solo goal to equalise before Coundon edged ahead again. However, Theo pulled it back to level again & with the last kick of the game, Seva pulled off a great save to keep the scores level. A great performance from the boys today.  Isaac put in a captain’s performance but Varun was named PotM .

Under 8 Lions played a tense final evaluation game against CTK.  CTK started strong with a goal early on. GNP settled down and some excellent interplay between Aaron and Sam gave Lions an equaliser. The brilliant passing game resulted in Lions further extending their lead with another goal by Sam assisted by Aaron. Arthur added another just before the break. Lions started 2nd half slowly allowing CTK to pull goals back. Lions dominated for large periods but a late counter attack by CTK resulted in them edging the game. Well done to Aaron who earned PotM for his excellent passing.

The Under 9 Lions had a morale boosting victory against the Sky Blue Hawks. After a back and forth in the first half where the scores were level, the Lions roared into the lead and kept it that way till the full time whistle. The boys all fought for each other and were rewarded with a brace of goals from Veer. Ksawery went on a solo run and was rewarded with a goal. Sahib forced an own goal from the opposition to end the game with a well deserved result. Congratulations Lions!

Under 9 Pumas hosted Rugby Borough. Pumas. It was a very even match-up with limited goalscoring opportunities. GNP went a goal down but evened things up soon after. 2nd half, Pumas went close, including a great long range strike against the crossbar. Unfortunately, it was Rugby who added to the scoresheet and the Pumas tried with all their might to even it back up, but unfortunately could not get the ball in the back of the net. Sunny was named PotM for the energy and intensity he showed.

SUNDAY - BOYS

1st round of the League Cup saw GNP Under 16s concede a sloppy goal early on against Cov Sphinx Blue and then equalised within a minute. GNP went ahead on half time and scored a crucial 3rd goal from the penalty spot to ensure victory and to go through to the next round of the Cup.

Under 14 Tigers Vs Kenilworth Sporting… first cup match for this season and the boys were ready for it today and brought their A game, with a cracking performance. The wingers were the stars today with some beautiful football and outstanding defending. Well done to Anesu for 4 goals and 2 assists and the star player Aayan. Also not forgetting goals from Indi, Manveer, Nikolai and 2 super assists by Daniel. Final score 7-0.

Under 13 Lions (pictured) faced Attleborough Sports Raiders in Div F League action and built on a platform of incremental improvements in their opening 3 games to pull off a clinical and emphatic 15-0 victory, their first win of the season! The increased awareness in positioning and good decision-making when passing meant Attleborough were constantly under pressure and the goals flowed! Debutant Arjun made an immediate impact with a sublime 1st minute goal and completed his hat trick for a debut to remember! 8 different goalscorers: Arjun(3), Ryan (2), Reon (2), Mohamed (2), Ayomide (2), Filip (1), Jasraj (1), Aahil (1), own goal (1). Plus 7 different players with assists: Ayomide (3), Mario (3), Jasraj (2), Ryan (1), Reon (1), Dominik (1) and Theo (1). Congratulations to the Lions - onwards and upwards!

Under 13 Tigers played Coventry Phoenix from the Division above in League Cup Round 1. After an innocuous start, the Tigers had a crazy 20 minute period, conceding 4 goals to seemingly give up any hopes of victory. However some positional adjustments gave the team more security at the back and they clawed their way back into the game. A fabulous 1st goal from Arjun after a sublime 1-2 with Harman B before half time renewed confidence. After the break Ehan slotted in our 2nd nicely after a cross from Cinar. Oscar then struck a beauty from 20 yards after a through ball from Cinar. GNP continued to push and were denied a glorious equaliser by an offside flag when Arjun finished off another chance. Pushing for the crucial goal, GNP were hit on the break in the dying moments for Phoenix to win 5-3. 

Under 12 Pumas visited Bedworth Eagles. Pumas took an early lead through Nathan Ngu. Aiden O Reilly scored after great wide play from Nathan, before he added the 3rd himself before halftime. Pumas started the 2nd half slowly, allowing Bedworth to pull 2 goals back. Any nerves were settled when Nathan completed his first ever hat trick for the Pumas. From balls over the top, am unstoppable Nathan used his pace and power to get his 4th and 5th goals of the game. Bedworth got another back from a long range free kick before Nathan added  his 6th and final goal of the the day.  A rock solid defensive performance from Pumas centre half, Mikaeel Hussain who kept the Bedworth danger man very quiet., Aiden O Reilly for terrorising the opposition defence with his pace, and Nathan Ngu who kept the Bedworth defence and keeper very busy throughout with significant reward!

Under 11 Lions were in knock out Trophy Event action against Rugby Borough. It was a game completely dominated by GNP,  who missed a number of gilt edged chances, both first half and second. If we had been more clinical, it could easily have been 8-0 at the end of the match. Instead, it ended up up goalless somehow and GNP lost the resulting penalty shootout. Can’t fault the performance and the number of chances we created, just needed to be a bit more clinical. Player of the match went to Kyle, for giving the Rugby defence a torrid time.

Under 11 GNP Pumas visited Khalsa FC. Pumas started off well, going 1-0 ahead in the first 10 mins, the first half was fairly even with both teams having some good chances, but Khalsa overturned the early lead by half time. 2nd half Khalsa FC stepped it up, playing some aggressive football, putting the Pumas under a lot of pressure, the game ended in clear victory  for the home team and a Pumas exit from the Trophy event.

Under 11 Tigers were in trophy event action against Sphinx Blue. Game started quite evenly but then Sphinx took control and dominated the game. Their dominance finally paid off as they broke through and beat offside line to score and added another couple in the first half. 2nd half Tigers tried and tried but couldn’t find an opening. Going for broke and pushing up Sphinx exploited the increasing gaps & scored. Tigers did pull one back through Shaan but it proved to just be a consolation.

Under 10 Tigers were up against CTK at home. In an evenly matched first half the Tigers struggled to find the final pass to create clear cut chances. Some excellent goalkeeping from Kyan kept the Tigers in the game. The 2nd half was a much improved performance,  some slicker passing in the final third led to some good chances, only goal for the Tigers was a screamer from Harrison. As the Tigers pushed high for another goal, they were caught on the counter attack. Another brilliant performance from all defenders, Anokh, Birat and Hansveer. PotM went to Kyan for stepping up in goal and keeping GNP in the game.

Under 9 Tigers were up against Triumph Athletic in their 2nd trophy event match. It was evenly matched for the first 10 minutes before Eesa scored the opener with a great assist by Josiah. Josiah then got an assist by Arveer to slot one home. The rest of a one-sided match saw Eesa & Josiah complete their own respective hat-tricks. Arveer’s goals came in the 2nd half with some fabulous long range efforts and he also notched a hat-trick. Salman hammered in his first goal of the season from the edge of the box. Rajan and Veer’s ball mastery was on full display scoring a goal each with Veer grabbing PotM for his assist and goal.
Rivan impressed with his attacking ability which was on display and went on several runs down the wing. GK Jacob, remained alert when needed, and was superb in the recorded penalty shoot out at the end, making 3 great saves.