Sheffield Futsal Club is a futsal team based in Sheffield, England, that competes in The FA National Futsal Series Tier 2. The club was formed in 2005, originally named Sheffield Stormers until 2008 when they affiliated with Sheffield FC to become founding members in the FA National Futsal League. In July 2021, they broke away from Sheffield FC to become an independent club.[1]
| Full name | Sheffield Futsal Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 2005 | |
| Ground | English Institute of Sport, Sheffield | |
| Chairman | Mohammed Almaysari | |
| Head Coach | Vacant | |
| League | National Futsal Series, T2 North | |
| 2021–22 | National Futsal League North, 2nd of 11 | |
| Website | https://sheffieldfutsalclub.co.uk/ | |
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Sheffield is one of the oldest and most successful futsal clubs in England, winning the FA National Futsal League North on three occasions. In 2011 they finished runners-up in the FA Futsal Grand Finals, losing out to London Helvécia Futsal Club.
Over the years they have played their home games in many arenas throughout Sheffield, including Ponds Forge, Concord Sports Centre, and Hillsborough Leisure Centre. They currently play their home games at the English Institute of Sport, Sheffield.
History
editEarly years
editFormed as Sheffield Stormers, founded by Mark England-Woodcock and Richard Moore. The club was set up to compete in the local futsal league held at the Sheffield United Academy in Shirecliffe, Sheffield.
Competing in the National Futsal League (2008-2009)
editBecoming one of the founding members in 2008, Sheffield entered into the FA's new national league system, the FA National Futsal League after affiliating with Sheffield FC. They played their first ever national futsal league match on 2 March 2008, ending in a 5-2 victory over Sheffield & Hallamshire Futsal Club.[2] Sheffield would be the only club to beat eventual league winners Tranmere Victoria, running out as impressive 10-2 winners with Liam Morris and Frazer Thomas each claiming a hat-trick.[3] Thomas would go on to lead Sheffield's scoring charts with 15 goals throughout the course of the campaign, helping Sheffield to a third-place finish, 3 points behind second-placed Manchester Futsal Club.
The 2009 season saw the club finish in 5th. After notching 7 points from a possible 9 in their first 3 games of the season with wins against Manchester and Leeds, Sheffield went on to lose 4 games on the bounce. They would only win one more game that season, finishing with a heavy 19-3 defeat at the hands of Loughborough University.[4] After the 2009 season had come to a close, Sheffield Futsal Club merged with Sheffield & Hallamshire Futsal Club, in a bid to create a team capable of qualifying for the UEFA Futsal Cup.
Champions of the north (2010)
editSheffield didn't get off to the best of starts for the 2010 campaign, although Frazer Thomas continued his scoring form, bagging a brace against Liverpool Futsal Club. But it wouldn't be enough as Sheffield would lose the first game of the season 4-2.[5] The loss spurred Sheffield to go unbeaten for the rest of the season, picking up a number of impressive wins along the way, 4-2 against 2008 league winners Tranmere Victoria, and dominant performances away from home at Liverpool, Oldham Athletic, and FC Grimsby with 8-2, 11-1 and 8-1 respective scorelines. The penultimate game would see the visit of Manchester, this fixture would prove to be an important bout as both teams looked to win the title for the first time in their clubs history. Sheffield clinched a 6-1 victory, goals from Richard Moore and Frazer Thomas with Joel Rocha and Ben Mortlock each notching two goals.[6] The triumph meant that they had all but claimed the league trophy going into the final game, with Sheffield 3 points and 9 goals ahead of Manchester. FC Grimsby traveled to Sheffield for the last game of the season, it was never in doubt with a convincing 17-2 win to claim the title in style.[7]
The season would see Curtis Holmes, Ben Mortlock and Ollie Wheatley O'Neil represent the England futsal team.
3rd Northern League title (2012-2013)
editThe 2012-2013 season would see a new coach at the helm after the departure of Junior Roberti, Spaniard Daniel Berdejo Del Fresno would take the reins as Sheffield were looking to regain their FA Futsal League North title that had been won by Manchester Futsal club in the previous season. The season would begin with a trip to teesside to play a strong Middlesbrough side however Sheffield would run out 7-5 winners. Further impressive wins would follow against Leeds and Derby before two big wins against Wakefield and Hull where Sheffield notched a combined 25 goals in the two games. Back to back victories against a resilient Liverpool side would see Sheffield top of the pile at the half way point of the season. Sheffield would start the new year with a resounding 14-1 victory over Wakefield, this was followed up with another win this time against Middlesbrough. A 14-0 victory over Derby would follow before Sheffield would face 2nd placed Manchester, the match did not disappoint a high quality match would finish 4-4. An impressive 10-2 victory over Hull FC would follow. The penultimate game of the northern league season would see Sheffield face off against rivals Manchester, victory for Sheffield would see them regain the Northern league title. Sheffield would win a tightly contested match 4-2 and with it claim the league title. The final game of the season would see Sheffield lose 5-3 against Leeds the defeat would be the clubs only defeat of the northern league season.
Sheffield would finish the season with a trip to Brussels for an international club friendly against Belgium professional side FP Asse Gooik. The match would be a highly entertaining one finishing 3-3 with FP Asse Gooik scoring two late goals to salvage a draw. It was a very respectable result for Sheffield as FP Asse Gooik were a leading team in the Belgium pro league and had several international players in their side.
The season would also see Curtis Holmes remain an ever present in the England squad, with call ups to the England Development Squad for youngsters Jonathan Steel, Ryan Tate and Richard Ward.
2013-2014
editThe 2013-2014 would be a season of transition for the club some key players had moved on with promising youngsters coming into the squad. England captain Ben Mortlock would return to the club after a spell with London Helvecia. The season would start with hard fought wins over Liverpool and a much improved Derby side, a 3-3 draw would follow against early pace setters and rivals Manchester. A 5-2 victory over Wakefield would follow however a high scoring match against Middlesbrough would see Sheffield lose their first game of the season although Sheffield would bounce back in the next weeks with victories against Liverpool and Derby respectively. Sheffield would then put in their best performance of the season with a 10-3 victory against 3rd placed Middlesbrough a victory that would catapult them back into the title race. The penultimate game of the season would see Sheffield run out with a high scoring victory over Wakefield this victory set them up for a winner takes all title decider against Manchester in the final game of the season. Sheffield came into the match knowing victory would secure them a 4th FA Futsal League North championship in five years but it was not to be as Manchester ran out comfortable winner's and took the title away from their yorkshire rivals.
The 2013-2014 campaign would see Ben Mortlock be a regular for England as well as see Richard Ward and Ryan Tate be called up to train with the England Senior Squad. Toluwanimi Sotonye would also be called up for the England Development Squad.
Season to season
edit| Season | Division | Place | Notes |
| 2008 | FA National Futsal League North | 3rd | — |
| 2009 | FA National Futsal League North | 5th | — |
| 2010 | FA National Futsal League North | 1st | FA Futsal Cup, 3rd place |
| 2010/11 | FA National Futsal League North | 1st | — |
| 2011/12 | FA National Futsal League North | 3rd | FA Futsal Grand Finals, runners up |
| 2012/13 | FA National Futsal League North | 1st | FA Futsal Grand Finals, 3rd place[8] |
| 2013/14 | FA National Futsal League North | 2nd | — |
| 2014/15 | FA National Futsal League North | 2nd | — |
| 2015/16 | FA National Futsal League, Super League North | 3rd | — |
| 2016/17 | FA National Futsal League, Super League North | 7th | Relegated from the Super League |
| 2017/18 | FA National Futsal League, Division One North | 4th | — |
| 2018/19 | FA National Futsal League, Division One North | 8th | — |
| 2019/20 | National Futsal League, Premiership North | 6th | League decided on points per game due to Coivd-19[9] |
| 2021/22 | National Futsal League North | 2nd | — |
Current squad
edit- As of 4 February 2023[10]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| Position | Name | Nationality |
|---|---|---|
| Goalkeeper | Elliot Di Napoli | 
|
| Goalkeeper | Joe Smedley |
|
| Goalkeeper | Cosmin Cristea | 
|
| Defender | Mark Chisholm | 
|
| Defender | Goncalo Andrade | 
|
| Defender | Adam Derradji |
|
| Winger | Fabinho |
|
| Winger | Pedro Sevilha |
|
| Winger | Lewis Stephenson |
|
| Winger | Denton Tyas |
|
| Winger | Henry Bowe |
|
| Winger | Danny Neath |
|
| Winger | Orlando Bidinotti | 
|
| Pivot | Ethan Crook |
|
| Pivot | Sergiu Didici |
|
| Pivot | Tyrone Gunter |
|
Notable former players
editThese players represented their country before, during, or after their time with the club.
Senior Squad
Curtis Holmes- Ben Mortlock[11]
- Richard Ward[12]
- Toluwanimi Sotonye
- Ryon Leyshon
- Ollie Wheatly-O'Neill
U23s/Development Squad
- Samuel Mattocks
- Ryan Tate
- Jonathan Steel
Managerial history
edit- As of 8 September 2022
| Dates | Name |
| 2008-2009 | Mark England-Woodcock & Richard Moore
|
| 2010 | Janio Cruz
|
| 2010-2011 |  Michel Liverani [13]
|
| 2011 | Mark England-Woodcock
|
| 2011-2012 | Junior Roberti
|
| 2012-2014 |  Daniel Berdejo-del-Fresno
|
| 2014-2015 | Mark England-Woodcock
|
| 2015-2016 | Ernest Cardona Plantada
|
| 2016-2017 | Sergi Saldana
|
| 2017 |  Giuseppe Brullo
|
| 2017-2018 | David Atkinson
|
| 2018–2020 | Adam Oldham
|
| 2020–2021 | Thomas Msadala
|
| 2021–2022 | Jordan Wildey[14]
|
Honours
editLeague
edit- FA National Futsal League North
- Champions (3): 2010, 2010/11, 2012/13
- Runners-up (3): 2013/14, 2014/15
References
edit- ^ Sheffield becomes independent. 13 July 2021. sheffieldfutsalclub.co.uk. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
- ^ Sheffield Futsal Club first NFL match March 2008. 02 March 2008. thefa.com. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
- ^ Sheffield Futsal Club vs Tranmere Victoria June 2008. 01 June 2008. thefa.com. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
- ^ Sheffield Futsal Club vs Loughborough Uni September 2009. 13 September 2009. thefa.com. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
- ^ Sheffield Futsal Club vs Liverpool Futsal Club January 2010. 10 January 2010. thefa.com. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
- ^ Sheffield Futsal Club vs Manchester Futsal Club June 2010. 06 June 2010. thefa.com. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
- ^ Sheffield Futsal Club vs FC Grimsby June 2010. 13 June 2010. thefa.com. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
- ^ Grand Finals 2013 10 June 2013. youtube.com. Retrieved 12 February 2019
- ^ 2019/20 Season thefa.com. Retrieved 18 September 2022
- ^ Sheffield Futsal Club players thefa.com. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
- ^ Ben Mortlock England Call-up. 12 January 2015. thefa.com. Retrieved 7 December 2018.
- ^ Futsal squad named for world cup qualifier. 9 December 2015. thefa.com. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
- ^ Sheffield appoint new Head Coach 31 October 2010. grimsbyfutsal.co.uk. Retrieved 22 July 2019.
- ^ Jordan Wildey appointed new Head Coach 23 September 2021. sheffieldfutsalclub.co.uk. Retrieved 21 October 2021.