Immediate: 16 September, 2005
Footballing Glory for Positive Steps Oldham
Positive Steps Oldham (PSO) has once again punched well above its weight by winning the national Connexions 5-a-side football tournament for the second time in three years.
Positive Steps Oldham delivers the Borough’s Connexions, Youth Offending, young people’s substance misuse services and teenage pregnancy strategy from the Connexions Centre on Union Street. It also provides equality, health and work experience services for young people.
The national tournament, held in Bradford, featured 29 men’s teams and 12 women’s teams, from all over England. PSO took two men’s teams, whose 16 players represented more than a third of the PSO male workforce, and a women’s team.
The men’s A team only lost one of their nine games, scored 32 goals and only conceded nine on their way to lifting the trophy. The women’s team, who won their tournament last year, were knocked out in the quarter finals by the eventual winners.
On their road to the final, PSO beat teams from as far afield as Cornwall and Devon, Leicestershire and London.
PSO captain, Tony Bradley, a Connexions Personal Adviser, was awarded with the prestigious trophy by former Liverpool goalkeeper Bruce Grobelaar.
Commenting on the win, Tony said: “It’s an incredible achievement for us to win the trophy for Oldham again. To beat teams from much bigger organisations from all over the country is testament to the spirirt and determination of everyone in the team.”
The winning team also featured acting Chief Executive of Positive Steps Oldham, Steve Murphy, who said: “In the last five years we’ve won this competition twice, been beaten finalists twice and made one semi-final. Every year the competition has got harder with more and more teams involved so to win again has been fantastic.”
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For further information, contact Andy Swain, Marketing and Information Manager, on 0161 621 9321.
