Aberystwyth Town recently hosted the first Welsh Disability Football Championships for a decade, with around 300 players from clubs across Wales competing across several categories.
Seven-a-side teams were grouped based on their players’ mobility, skill and tactical ability, with a youth competition followed by a senior tournament.
An entertaining tournament saw the highest scoring match feature nine goals, as Clarbeston Road beat Sylfaen Caernarfon 5-4, whilst the lowest scoring game still served up four goals.
Former Cymru captain Kevin Ratcliffe, who met players and awarded Wales’ first national prizes in disability football, said: “Games throughout the day were played in such a good spirit and it was great to see so many players enjoying playing football, especially as the different levels gave the players a chance to shine.”
The youth competition saw a hugely entertaining U12 round robin take place, featuring clubs from West and South Wales. As disability football utilises a 4-year age banding, the next age group to take part was U16s.
In the U16 competition, Margam Youth Centre’s Inclusion Stags, who participated in the first Welsh U16 Disability League this season, finished both 1st and 2nd, ahead of Llechryd AFC, Wales’ newest disability football team.
Senior teams were split into five categories. In the Premiership 1, home club Aberystwyth Town secured the title with a 2-0 win over Clarbeston Road. Premiership 2 saw Fishguard Sports AFC claim the title ahead of Llandudno and Sylfaen Caernafon, two North Wales teams making national debuts.
Clarbeston Road won the Championship 1 tournament ahead of Bridgend Herons, whilst Aberystwyth Town pipped Fishguard Sports AFC to the Championship 2 title. Sandfields were crowned winners of the Champions League category, claiming a 2-1 victory over Mental Health Football Wales’ Phoenix football club in the final.
Dai Carpenter, Grassroots Disability & Inclusion Manager at the FAW, said: “It was great to bring clubs from our three disability football leagues together. There’s a real demand for football amongst people with disabilities, and they can be a really valuable and wonderfully fun part of any club. We want to quadruple opportunities for people with disabilities and can help new clubs get involved. Events like this mean so much to these players.”
Wales currently has a total of 28 clubs participating in three Regional Disability Football Leagues, with three clubs starting brand-new inclusive teams for children this season.
Furthermore, the Welsh ALN School Sport Network launched the All Wales Secondary School ALN Cup for the 2024-25 season, a competition that will take place again in the future. As a result, there are opportunities around Wales for clubs to create links with Additional Needs Schools.
As detailed in the Enhancing Lives Through Football strategy, helping more clubs create inclusive teams is a priority for the FAW and with over 350,000 people living with a disability in Wales, there are opportunities for so many more clubs to join in.
Find out how to get involved
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