Female football on the rise for colleges
Mon, 12 December 2022
Tameside College encourages female students into sport with first ever local colleges tournament.
The college played host to teams from Ashton Sixth Form College and Hopwood Hall College as part of an initiative to encourage more girls to participate in the sport.
According to charity Women in Sport, girls continue to be significantly less active than boys, with 43% of girls taking part in some form of exercise weekly.
The 5-a-side competition included a ‘group stage’ with each team, including a 1st and 2nd team from Hopwood Hall College, playing against one another in the college’s sports hub. The top two teams then played against one another to decide the winner.
Hopwood Hall College’s 2nd team raised the trophy after facing off and beating their rival 1st team in a ten minute final, with Tameside College’s team coming in 3rd.
This is the first time the college’s female football team have played together and Mark Pollitt, the college’s health and wellbeing officer is hoping to encourage a growth in the sport, with more tournaments and fixtures planned.
Mark said: “It is really important that we organise events such as this to raise the profile of female football and sport in general. Many girls may feel like they can’t take part because they aren’t confident enough or there’s pressure from peers but I hope that we can break that, especially with the recent success of the lionesses.”
The college offers a wide range of enrichment opportunities with students able to take part in everything from cross country and fitness sessions to quiz and arts and crafts groups.
To find out more about enrichment opportunities at Tameside College, visit www.tameside.ac.uk or call 0161 908 6600.