England's men finished in ninth spot after a crushing victory over Belarus
England end with goalfest
By Oliver Eadsforth in Moscow. Saturday, 18 November 2006.
Belarus 5-10 England
European Deaf Futsal Championship, 9th-12th place Semi Final
Sushevsky Val Street 56, Pitch 1
Moscow, Russia
Saturday 18 November 2006
Fighting for ninth place in their last match of the European Deaf Futsal Championship, England enjoyed a goal feast against Belarus at the weekend.
Just six days earlier, England opened their campaign with a 3-1 win over Turkey, and having played four matches since, the squad showed no signs of exhaustion.
John Smith’s team went into the final match having recorded eight goals against Slovenia, and only five minutes into the match, England showed that their scoring streak would continue again in this match, when Jason Corbett struck with an excellent finish after hard work from Holdsworth.
The goals continued to rain in at both ends but Daniel Holdsworth added the final goal to England’s Championship campaign with a glorious run, leaving the Belarusian defenders shattered to pieces. The team celebrated at the final whistle after a 10-5 scoreline, marking a fine result for The Three Lions.
The result earned praise from Smith, who paid tribute to his players. He said: “We have worked hard coming into this tournament, and I am pleased with the strength and courage the players have shown.”
Smith is also confident that England will build on their performance in Russia ahead of the World Futsal Championship in Bulgaria next year.
“We need to continue to develop Futsal in England, and to see some new faces coming into the game which will increase competition for places” added Jon.
England captain John Atkinson praised the efforts of the squad after their first ever tournament together.
“We were guilty of some mistakes, but each time we reacted positively," he said. "We came into this championship aiming for the Gold which we didn't achieve, but we worked hard and the attitude was right from the squad all the way through."
England's men and ladies teams took part in the closing ceremony on Saturday evening, where the European Deaf Sports Organisation (EDSO) Futsal flag was drawn down and passed onto Latvian officials for their next European Deaf Futsal Championship, which will be held in Riga in 2010.
Click here to view the latest tables