NI Futsal team in Gibraltar for international games ahead of Home Nations tournament
Coach Jonny Michael is hoping they can build on success of win in May
Northern Ireland’s Futsal team will kick off later tonight the first of back-to-back international friendlies in Gibraltar.
Coach Jonny Michael named a 14-strong squad which will also take part in the Home Nations tournament in Edinburgh next weekend.
The games in Gibraltar will be essentially preparation for the serious business in Scotland.
Michael’s hoping they can build on the success of their victory over San Marino in May.
But they are also aiming to improve on last year’s Home Nations debut in Wales.
They have games against Scotland, Wales and England from next Friday through to Sunday.
“The establishment of the Northern Ireland Futsal League has provided our players with more opportunities to play competitive games and I am confident that this league will strengthen year on year,” Michael said.
"The Home Nations Championships in Wales last December assisted in raising the profile of the game here in Northern Ireland. Within 12 months we have played five international games, established a domestic league and have had our league champions participate in the UEFA Futsal Cup.”
And added "It has been a year since we established our international futsal programme. We are still on a steep learning curve but the improvement in the squad has been incredible. By the end of the year we will have played 10 international games and our players will go into 2018 with increased experience.”
“We have a determination to produce a high level of performance and prepare effectively for the Home Nations Championships the following week. As a group we know that we are steadily progressing and we aim to give a good account of ourselves in these next five games and demonstrate how far we have come in 12 months.”
The Northern Ireland futsal squad features:
Goalkeepers
Philip Irvine (Belfast United Futsal Club), Daniel Rosbotham (Banbridge Town Futsal Club);
Defenders
Adam Barr (Genesis Futsal Club), Scott Gunn (Durham Futsal Club), James Gould (Banbridge Town Futsal Club), Ciaran Donaghy (Belfast United Futsal Club), Kris Lindsay (Belfast United Futsal Club);
Wingers
John Gibson (Banbridge Town Futsal Club), Jack Magee (Belfast United Futsal Club), Conor Glenholmes (Belfast United Futsal Club), Craig Taylor (Banbridge Town Futsal Club), Jonathan Pierce (Belfast United Futsal Club), Jordan Wilson (Banbridge Town Futsal Club);
Pivots
Connor Millar (FC Salisbury United), Ernestas Verenka (Banbridge Town Futsal Club), Chris Donnelly (Wattcell Futsal Club)