FC Halifax Town U19s secured the National League U19 Youth Alliance Division J league title with a well-fought 2-1 win over Gateshead.
Gateshead took a surprise lead after a defensive error from the Shaymen. However, Halifax fought back to level the scores through Marko Basic, before James Sunderland latched onto Ousman Cham’s low cross in the second half to clinch the victory and the league title.
Halifax have dominated Division J, winning the title by 14 points, and still with two games to play. The team now progresses to the National playoffs where they will face the winners from nine other regional divisions. The first round playoff takes place on May 3rd.
Mark Trueman, the lead coach of the youth team said: “This is a great achievement for the club, staff and players. We are a young group with a number of first year players who are new to our programme and to do this in our first season is excellent. However we must want more; we have two remaining league games and we want to remain focused and carry this momentum into the National playoffs.”
Director of Youth, Junior and Community Football Development, Steve Nichol said: “Winning the league is a great reward for the staff and players; they are history makers reaching the second round of the FA Youth Cup and winning the league for the first time as FC Halifax Town. I would also like to thank RSA for their sponsorship of the youth team and acknowledge our partnership with Calderdale College for their continued support of the programme”
Next up for the Shaymen is a game against Guiseley on April 5th. The game takes place at Rothwell Juniors and kicks off at 2pm.
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