schoolsfootball – English Schools' Football Association

The ESFA Pokémon Primary Schools’ Cup Finals are to take place at Pride Park, home of Derby County FC, on Friday 17th May.

24 primary school teams from across the country will descend on Derby County to attend the second season of the Pokémon Schools’ Cup Finals, with three teams being crowned National Champions at the end of the day. Eight National Finalists have qualified for each of the three competitions, all of which have competed in and won District, County and Regional rounds in each of their respective competitions. The three competitions being contested are:

ESFA Pokémon Primary Schools’ Cup for School Teams’
ESFA Pokémon Primary Schools’ Cup for Girls’
ESFA Pokémon Primary Schools’ Cup for Small Schools’

The Pokémon Schools’ Cup 2024 kicked off back in September with the district rounds’ schools competing in their local area for a spot in the county rounds. The county rounds ran from December – January, with schools playing for the chance to attend one of four regional finals (North, Midlands, South East & South West), which all took place in March. The winners and runners up from these regional finals now have the chance to be crowned National Champions if they come out on top when they travel to Derby County on Friday 17th May.

The matches will kick off at 12pm on the 7th June with gates opening at 11am. Entry for spectators is free but the ESFA ask that spectators book tickets via the link below. A refreshment kiosk will be open for the purchase of hot and cold snacks and drinks and match day programmes will be available for free, upon arrival to the stadium.

Book your tickets here

The event will be streamed live on ESFA TV with full match commentary. Coverage will be free of charge and will remain online after the event has taken place, so players, team officials and spectators can enjoy watching the game(s) back at a later date.

To get a taste of what the Pokémon Schools’ Cup finals are all about check out some of the footage from last years event below:

National Finalists 2024

ESFA Pokémon Primary Schools’ Cup for School Teams’

County SFA	Region	National Finalist School Name
South Yorkshire	North (Winner)	Lacewood Primary School
Greater Manchester	North (runner up)	Russell Scott Primary School
West Midlands	Midlands (Winner)	The Meadows Primary School
Shropshire	Midlands (runner up)	Redhill Primary Academy
Gloucestershire	South West (winner)	Longlevens Junior School
Channel Islands	South West (runner up)	Victoria College Prep
Essex	South East (winner)	St Peter’s Catholic Primary School
Bedfordshire	South East (runner up)	Stopsley Community Primary School

ESFA Pokémon Primary Schools’ Cup for Girls’

County SFA	National Final	National Finalists School Name
Merseyside	North (winner)	Dovedale Community Primary School
Lancashire	North (runner up)	Our Lady and St Edward’s Catholic Primary School
Nottinghamshire	Midlands (Winner)	The Sacred Heart Primary Catholic Voluntary Academy
Worcestershire	Midlands (runners-up)	St Bede’s Catholic Middle School
Devon	South West (winner)	Caen Community Primary School
Gloucestershire	South West (runner up)	Barrs Court Primary School
Kent	South East (winner)	Dulverton Primary School
Inner London	South East (runner up)	Yerbury Primary School

ESFA Pokémon Primary Schools’ Cup for Small Schools’

County SFA	National Finals	County Winners School Name
Cheshire	North (Winner)	Acresfield Academy
Cumbria	North (runner up)	Plumpton School
West Midlands	Midlands (winner)	St Nicholas Catholic Primary School
Derbyshire	Midlands (runner up)	Bramley Vale Primary School
Somerset	South West (winner)	Churchill Church of England Primary School
Oxfordshire	South West (runner up)	St John Fisher Catholic Primary School
Essex	South East (winner)	Bentley St Paul’s Church of England Primary School
Middlesex	South East (runner up)	Alma Primary

Social Media

Make sure to follow @schoolsfootball on X, Instagram & Facebook for updates on the Pokémon Schools’ Cup and for behind the scenes action of the event.

The English Schools' FA

The National Governing Body for Schools’ Football in England.

The England U18 Schoolboys travelled to the SMH Group Stadium, to play their Scottish counterparts in both sides’ final SAFIB Centenary Shield game of the season. After getting off to a slow start in their defence of the trophy this season, England looked to build on their impressive 4-0 win v the Republic of Ireland last week and finish their season on a high with a good performance against the Scots.

England v Scotland in a Under 18 Schoolboys SAFIB Centenary Shield match at SMH Group Stadium on Friday 12th April 2024 (c) Garry Griffiths | ThreeFiveThree Photography

The match started slowly with both sides trying to figure each other out, some fierce challenges and stern defending the highlights of the first 10 minutes. This all changed when England had their first chance of the game. A long ball from Captain, Jack Matton found Freddie Hayden running in behind the Scotland line, Hayden kept his cool and fired his shot between the legs of the onrushing Scotland Keeper.

The Scottish took only a minute to respond however, Jack Allen showed some great feet to find room for a shot which rocketed off the post and fell kindly to Flynn McKay, who slotted home just past the foot of Ryan Johnson in the England goal.

The remainder of the first half saw chances for both sides, Aaron Cocks causing Scotland all sorts of problems down the left with Jude Entwhistle forcing a number of saves from the Scotland keeper. The big moment came in first half stoppage time, Deacon Smalley whipping in a brilliant ball from a wide free kick and Freddie Hayden heading it in for his second of the evening to put England 2-1 up going into the break.

Scotland came out of the traps quickest in the second period, Stuart DcDowell’s effort thundering off the bar in the 48^th minute. The pressure told in the 62^nd minute when a Scotland corner was taken short to Matthew Falconer who put a brilliant ball into the box that was headed home by Reuben Cooper to make it 2-2.

The game continued to swing back and forwards, but it was England who scored next. Jonah Scutt, who had just come onto the field for his first minutes in the Centenary Shield this season after struggling with an injury, latched onto a loose ball in the box and fired home via a deflection to give England the lead once again.

With a nervous finish beckoning for the England boys, the player who had taken the armband for the final game, Jack Matton, outjumped everyone in the box to head home another fantastic delivery from Deacon Smalley to secure all 3 points for England.

A game full of twists and turns and a game that had the 1000+ fans in the SMH Group Stadium and the thousands watching at home on the edge of their seats, means England finish their Centenary Shield campaign on a high, giving the Manager, Luke Hampton, one last victory as his time as England Manager comes to an end.

Watch the full match back over on ESFA TV and below: