Rafa Surprises Premier League Primary Stars Competition Finalists

Winners of the regional heats of the Premier League Primary Stars Competition, organised by Newcastle United Foundation, had an exciting week when Rafa Benitez visited them at the first team training ground for the finals.

The finals brought together the qualifying mixed and girls teams to play out a final round to decide who would represent Newcastle at the national tournament at Leicester’s King Power Stadium in May. You can read about how the teams got to the finals here.

After some incredibly hard fought games, with the quality of football high throughout, it was Ovingham Middle School who took home the gold from the girls’ teams, with Marden Bridge qualifying from the mixed teams.

Football wasn’t the only cause for excitement on the day though. The Premier League trophy added some glamour to proceedings, before a surprise visit from Magpies’ boss Rafa Benitez brought excitement from both players and teachers as he took time out of his busy schedule to shake hands and speak to the children.

Alex Curran, Primary Area Coordinator for Northumberland & North Tyneside at Newcastle United Foundation, said: ‘The Premier League Primary Stars programme has been a fantastic initiative in developing the skills of the children both on and off the pitch, and it’s great to see that coming together at both the regional tournaments and here at the finals’.

‘Everyone loved taking photos with the Premier League trophy and Rafa stopping by to say hello really made the day something special.’

The winners now have an exciting wait before they head down to the East Midlands in May, to take on the best primary school teams the rest of the country has to offer.

Want to find out more about Premier League Primary Stars and how you can get involved?