Sassco were delighted to host Fir Park F2F, who travelled down from Scotland for a 9-a-side friendly game.
This was part of a football weekend taking in Newcastle and Sunderland, and also an enjoyable and competitive 9-a-side friendly played at the Beacon of Light.
Fir Park F2F arrived with a large squad of around 18 players, while Sassco were happy with their nine reliables. Fir Park made good use of their numbers, overturning an early spell of Sassco pressure and a 1-0 deficit to quickly take a 2-1 lead.
A major reason Sassco remained firmly in the contest was debut goalkeeper Kerian Nelson, who made a series of superb saves to keep the score at 2-1 despite the best efforts of the dodgy defence in front of him.
The second half saw a bit of panic as the sweating Sassco bunch watched Fir Park change their entire team. Fortunately, the game remained evenly balanced, and Sassco gradually began to take advantage of their chances before eventually pulling clear midway through the second half.
Paul Cook led the way with four goals, almost all of them superb headers, while Phil Railton, Michael Rawlinson, Mike Barker, Tom Boutflower and Ryan Cassidy were also on target. The remaining members of the squad were Davinder Sangha and Garry Buck – both stuck in defence, so no goals.
Of the team, Railton, Cook, Sangha and Buck were all recent members of Sassco’s successful Austria Tour 2026, while Rawlinson returned after missing several recent games. The match also saw debuts for Nelson and Cassidy, while Boutflower continued his return with his second appearance.
Special thanks go to everyone at Fir Park F2F for making the journey south and contributing to a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon of football. We hope they enjoyed their stay in the region and wish them a safe trip home.
There’s a rumour going around that a large, hairy individual was spotted in Newcastle telling shocked shoppers in Eldon Square that he scored four goals today…
