The Chelsea Foundation’s adult cerebral palsy teams have completed a successful season, their first campaign as two squads competing in the National Cerebral Palsy Football League.
Following an increase in the number of players, the two teams have been busy playing on a monthly basis, competing in two or three fixtures on each matchday.
The two teams finished in respectable fourth and sixth positions in the National Cerebral Palsy Football League, along with a brilliant second-placed finish for a joint Chelsea Foundation squad in the Cerebral Palsy Challenge Trophy, which took place at the prestigious St George’s Park.
Jordan Clarke, disability and inclusion coordinator at the Chelsea Foundation, said: ‘This group of players are very special and what they produced at St George’s Park was truly inspirational. The togetherness displayed was a massive positive, because it showed how much the players enjoyed the experience and the hard work in training paying off.
'For myself and the rest of the coaches, we all agreed that day was the proudest we have been in the past two years of coaching this group. The team are now looking forward to the upcoming season and we are all very excited to see the team develop even further in the coming years.’
Finlay Stapells, who has been in the cerebal palsy squad for two years and claimed the Player of the Year accolade this season, added: ‘As a young group we have progressed and have proved some people wrong in the way we played our football.
'There is still space to improve and we are ready to do that. We are always improving thanks to the constant support we receive from the Chelsea Foundation staff on and off the pitch.’