University of Bath students are going to Wembley on FA Cup Final day after winning FA People’s Cup
A team of football-playing students from the University of Bath will be presented with a trophy on the pitch at Wembley on FA Cup Final day after winning a national small-sided competition.
Team Best were undefeated in 20 matches as they came out on top in the Men’s University category of the FA People’s Cup, an inclusive competition run in partnership with BBC Get Inspired and designed to encourage more people to enjoy the game.
Economics student Meharpaul Gill will lift the trophy at half-time of the FA Cup Final between Manchester City and Watford on Saturday, May 18 while his team-mates – Jack Curran, Ed King, Calum Lazarus, Jonathan Ashenafi, Luke Mayberry, George Howell and Pravan Thind – will also be in attendance at the showpiece match.
Team Best, coached by James McKelvie and Dominic Shaw, successfully came through a first round staged at the University of Bath in February – organised and run by The SU Sport and University of Bath Football Club – before overcoming opposition from Bristol, Cardiff, Exeter, Gloucester and Plymouth in the regional round at the University of Gloucestershire.
That secured their place in last weekend’s FA People’s Cup Finals at St George’s Park, the FA’s national football centre in Burton, where they beat Newcastle 3-0 in the semi-finals thanks to goals from Howell, Gill and Lazarus before a Lazarus double secured a 2-1 victory over Bournemouth to take the trophy.
This year’s competition saw in excess of 4,000 teams compete across 15 different categories, more than 500 of them in the Men’s University category. Click here for more information.
Picture of Team Best courtesy of The FA.
