We are on fire at the moment!!
✅️ Summer Sawyer playing out from the back
The Leeds connection
⚽️ Lydia Greenwood ➡️ Reese Hopkinson ➡️ Harriet Sutton 🎯
You have been taken from us too soon- but you will always be
@SAFCFoL
💔
From
@SunderlandRTC
to
@FoLWomens
- you were part of lots of special moments that your teammates/friends will treasure for ever! Rest in peace Dom
Our thoughts are with her family & friends at this time
More exciting news for our Women’s programme as current
@SunderlandRTC
U16 Goalkeeper
@frankiehackett1
signs up to our Scholarship programme from 2022!
Here at
@SAFCFoL
we are starting our very own Women’s team! Are you 16+ & looking to play in a Women’s league on a weekend? We will be holding trials when it is safe to do so! To register your interest email Steve.McClarence
@foundationoflight
.co.uk
Guest Coach-
@Jamie_Wright4
Jamie is the Managing Director at
@SAFCFoL
& is also coaches
@SunderlandRTC
U16’s!
Jamie is going to deliver a session to our squad in the New Year & brings a wealth of experience having worked at
@SunderlandAFC
Academy for many years!!
We are so lucky here at
@FoLWomens
! Today we had our 1st Special Guest coaching session with an excellent session from
@SunderlandRTC
coach &
@NUFCWomen
captain
@Courtneylock_2
! Courtney focused on technical excellence & willingness to defend💪⚽️⚽️
What a day!! Our Women's squad have done us proud today, matching Everton WSL Academy for 90+ mins! We had the better of the 1st half and Everton came back in the 2nd half.
Everton WSL Academy 4-2
@FoLWomens
What an experience to play in the
@DcblStadium
!!
STUDENT/PLAYER UPDATE
Another
@SunderlandRTC
player that will be joining us from 2022 & will represent
@SunderlandAFC
in the
@NFYLU19
is Rhiannon Mallaburn! Rhi has the heart of a lion (or
@Lionesses
😉) & is such a caring person! We can’t wait for you to start with us Rhi!!
Outstanding day for our Women’s program who worked hard & played some really good football!
Sunderland FOL A 4-0 Steven Gerrard Academy
Burnley 2-5 Sunderland FOL B
The next signing for 2022 is
@SunderlandRTC
player
@ebloomer03
! We have so much respect for Emily & are in awe of the dedication & sacrifice that she has shown over the last 7/8 years! Emily represents everything that we stand for!
Wow, it just gets better!!
@SunderlandRTC
player
@georginaspragg
will be playing for
@FoLScholars
Women in the
@NFYLU19
next season!!
Georgina has a huge amount of potential & is such a good person which is important to the kind of environment that we want to create here!
Brilliant experience for our Sunderland B squad today as we played on the Durham Women's 1st team pitch in our match against Durham in the
@NFYLU19
! It was an exciting end to end game which ended 3-0 to Durham. We are so proud of where we have come from & where we are heading to!
DEAL SIGNED! ✍️
@ellemaytaylor7
is the latest member of our Women’s squad to secure a Scholarship in the 🇺🇸
Elle has worked so hard for this, both in her football & studies!
Elle will be heading off to
@westcliffu_wsoc
in July!!
What a way to start Pre-Season!
A win for our RTC U16 squad & a defeat for our U19’s Scholars vs
@RangersWFC
!
Where else would you get a program where you get to play at these kinds of facilities against these standard of players?!
Lots of work to do, but we are ready for it!
Next to sign up for September was
@SunderlandRTC
player Leanna Giles (top row, 4th from left). Leanna is an incredible footballer with a huge amount of potential, and has a brilliant personality! Another player that has progressed from
@SAFCFoL
PDC to RTC to Scholars!!
Another great role model is
@leanna95629555
! Leanna would make a 5-hour round trip from Whitehaven to Sunderland, 3 times a week for 4/5 years with
@SAFCFoL
&
@SunderlandRTC
.
No wonder her & Maria have hit it off in training, with a mutual respect & values that they share!
One person that we haven’t seen much of this season is
@MaltaFA1900
U19 International
@Emma_ciantar
. Unfortunately Emma suffered a double leg break in Pre Season but received some excellent news today and can progress to the next stage in her rehab. This is phenomenal progress!
We are delighted to announce that
@rhimallaz22
has signed for
@SAFCWomen
U23’s for the 2022/23 season!
Rhiannon has the heart of a lion & will be a fantastic addition to our
@NFYLU19U23
squad!!
Our first day of our Malta International Training Camp yesterday was a long day of travelling! Including our flight from Edinburgh Airport-but was worth it!
Maria is a perfect example of what is possible with hard work, desire & sacrifice! Maria spent her childhood yrs getting up at 5.30am everyday to get the ferry from Gozo to Malta to attend the National Sports School where she was an outstanding student!
Tomorrow we return to play our good friends at
@RangersWFC
! It’s been 3 years & we can’t wait to catch up & showcase both of our programs!
@RangersWFC
U16’s vs
@SunderlandRTC
U16’s
@RangersWFC
U19’s vs
@FoLWomens
U19’s
Where else would you get an experience like this??!!
International Women’s Day
We have 2 squads full of independent women who are striving to be the best that they can be in both education & football!
Tomorrow, we continue our league adventure in the
@NFYLU19
!
Today, our
@FoLScholars
Women’s squad faced each other for the 1st time ever in the
@NFYLU19
Sunderland FOL A 2-1 Sunderland FOL B
If you get the right people, who want to work hard everyday to improve, then anything is possible!
Here is the winning goal in our
@NFYLU19
League Cup Semi Final as we defeated Park View yesterday! An excellent team goal finished by
@leanna95629555
who was outstanding!
It’s been an excellent day with over 40 girls on our Open Training Session!!
We now look forward to 2 games in the
@NFYLU19
this week
Wednesday 2nd June
Sunderland FOL A vs
@THISGIRLKICKS
Thursday 3rd June
Sunderland FOL B vs
@THISGIRLKICKS
Our Sunderland FOL B squad completed their season today with a 3-1 win away to Burnley! It was an excellent performance of character & grit which sees the girls finish 6th in their 1st season in the
@NFYLU19
!
An excellent performance and result for our Women’s squad today as we ran out 8-3 winners against a very tough Steven Gerrard Academy side!
Goal scorers:
Milly Cairns ⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️
@rhimallaz22
⚽️⚽️
Olivia Inaloz ⚽️
Excellent day for our
@FoLScholars
@FoWomens
Programme with our B team winning 3-0 against Chester Le Street and our A team winning 8-0 against Burnley! Everyone has worked so hard over the last 4 weeks and improved massively which has transferred to the pitch!
Its been a busy couple of days for our Programme! On Tues night we had our first ever
@SAFCFoL
Girls Academy U16 showcase against
@FolClub
U15 Boys! It was a tough game but that is what the programme is about- we aim to push and develop the girls instead of taking the easy option
We are delighted to announce that
@elliecalvert
has signed for
@SAFCWomen
U23’s for the 2022/23 season!
Ellie is a 2nd year student on our program. She has worked so hard and progressed so much over the last year! We can’t wait to see what the next year brings!
This is just the start of a fantastic partnership with
@THISGIRLKICKS
which will include more showcase games later in the year, then leading to the Dallas Cup in 2023!
Where else would you get these opportunities?!
Another addition to our 2022 squad is Ailsa Swinburne! Ailsa has been part of our
@SAFCFoL
Girls PDC & is now in our
@SAFCFoL
Girls Academy. Ailsa is athletic, multi skilled in different sports, & is an excellent technical footballer who will take the
@NFYLU19
by storm!
What a way to finish our season with a magnificent performance against Chesterfield yesterday!
Goalscorers:
Milly Cairns ⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️⚽️
Darienne Thompson ⚽️⚽️⚽️
Olivia Woodcock ⚽️
Emily Brown ⚽️
Maya Gildroy ⚽️
Bridie Thompson ⚽️
Malta Training Camp
We had our 2nd training session this morning with Coaches Melania & Charlene from Birkirkara FC! We are now recovering ahead of our game against Lija Boys tonight
We travelled down on Saturday, stayed overnight then played the game this morning- giving the girls a professional experience of what it would be like to manage the demands of a dual career pathway in Women’s football!
We are proud that we can offer unique experiences like this!
What a goal to secure our win on Wednesday against Durham Women in the
@NFYLU19
! Quality drive through midfield from Grace Mackie, excellent cross from
@_laura_keogh_
for Erin Liddle to finish!
Week 2 of our Return to Training complete! ✅
Today our 1st years had a 4v4 tournament followed by Man Utd cage football game- everyone in the cage, quick decisions, quick passing & footwork to get out of tight areas!
@Paulmcg8
An excellent performance and result for our
@FoLWomens
squad as we left the Steven Gerrard Academy with a 3-2 win!!
Goal scorers were:
Maya Gildroy ⚽️
Rhiannon Mallaburn ⚽️
Eden Pearson ⚽️
We played the Man Utd game where you overload one team eg 10 v 6 - the 10 must combine pass & run - the defender who wins the ball MUST dribble
@Paulmcg8
Plenty of practice at “getting close to the 🔥 without getting burnt”
@FoLWomens
Education & Football Scholarship Program
Open Training Session for Girls in Years 10 & 11 at school
Date: 21st December
Time: 1-3.30pm
Venue: Downhill Football Hub, Kingsway Road, Sunderland, SR5 4BB
To confirm your place 📧Steve.McClarence
@foundationoflight
.co.uk
An excellent first game today against
@THISGIRLKICKS
for our Sunderland FOL A squad! Some excellent football by both teams in a competitive game in the
@NFYLU19
Next up- Sunderland FOL B vs
@THISGIRLKICKS
tomorrow!!
Not only is our 2021 squad taking shape, but our 2022 squad is taking shape too!
Another addition for 2022 is
@SunderlandRTC
player Bridie Thompson! Bridie is an excellent technical footballer & creative, fun character! We can’t wait for you to start with us Bridie!
We can’t wait to see how the midfield partnership of
@milly11horner
&
@MillieBrewerton
develops next season! 2 players who represent everything that we stand for, on & off the pitch!
Wow, our squad for September just gets better & better!
@SunderlandRTC
player
@JessSpark1
will be joining us in September! Jess is a player that has worked so hard over the years and will be an excellent defender & leader for us!
A great game against
@SAFCFoL
today. A 0-1 loss but the right competition and challenge. Thank you for travelling down to play us.
@Mount_Kelly
#MKSport
We've had an excellent 2 weeks on our
@SAFCFoL
Girls Academy/Girls Scholars Open Training Sessions with over 40 girls on the first week and over 30 on the second week! If you are in Year 10 or 11 and are interested in signing up email Steve.McClarence
@foundationoflight
.co.uk
Our Sunderland FOL A squad were at home to Chester Le Street (Park View) winning 2-1! The girls were unlucky not to add 3/4 more goals to their tally as they dominated possession to remain top of the
@NFYLU19
!
What a week we have coming up!
First our Women's squad have a friendly vs Everton WSL Academy on Wednesday at the
@DcblStadium
!
Then on Friday we have Sunderland A vs B in the
@NFYLU19
Where else would you get this kind of opportunity? That is what is unique about us!
29 Girls at our Open Training Session today for our
@FoLScholars
Women’s Programme! We have a lot of girls wanting to join our programme & we are confident that we will get the right people!
Jamie Chandler
@jamie_chandler4
is Director of Football at
@MonkwearmouthFA
& Assistant Manager at
@SpennymoorTown
! Jamie is a
@UEFA
A Licence Coach. What an experience for our players to be coached by someone with such experience! You wouldn’t get this anywhere else!
Kirsty James is a fantastic technical footballer & is such a nice person! Kirsty has the potential to play Tier 4/5 football in the future & we will strive to help her achieve this during her time with us & beyond.
2nd Day back for our Women’s squad-this time with our 1st years in today! Testing went smoothly again this morning. In training we again reminded ourselves of our playing philosophy & who we are!
Different type of training session today for our Women’s squad after an excellent effort yesterday in our
@NFYLU19
Derby!
Basketball, Futsal and Badminton followed by S&C with
@MichaelHaley110
First up today, our Sunderland FOL A squad travelled to Burnley in the
@NFYLU19
. A 5-1 win extended our lead at the top of the
@NFYLU19
to 11 points!!
Here are some more photos from our Graduation ceremony yesterday
It was a great day to celebrate the success of our Post 16 programs!
We would like to thank all of our students-those that were there yesterday & those that couldn’t make it, for all of their hard work this year!
Winners!!
A massive congratulations to our reserve team who have won the
@NorthRidingFA
county cup with a 1-0 victory over
@YorkCityLFC
. Goal scorer was
@alicia_mutrie
but a huge well done
@KayleyDunn4
with a player of the match performance which included a penalty save!
#UTBW
Katy Watson
Katy made some very important appearances for us last season, contributing to our success!
Katy has been with
@SunderlandRTC
since U11’s & is now with
@SAFCWomen
in the
@BarclaysWC
!!
She is currently on her way to
@Lionesses
U18 training camp! Good luck Katy!
An exciting start to our
@NFYLU19
season for our
@FoLWomens
squads!
Sunderland FOL B 6-1 Burnley
A commanding display from our B team with
@erintay53063660
on 🔥 scoring 4 goals!
Our
@SAFCFoL
Girls Academy are having a great time in Birmingham! We travelled down earlier today & are staying overnight in preparation for our showcase game tomorrow! The girls have relaxed tonight taking in different activities including adventure golf!!
Was a great game today for our Sunderland FOL B squad against
@THISGIRLKICKS
in the
@NFYLU19
! Some excellent football by both teams resulted in a 2-2 draw!
We are excited to play our second fixture of our Sunderland residential tour today!⚽️
We have another testing fixture again
@FoLWomens
B as our U17s play their second game in the space of 2️⃣4️⃣ hours📈
Replicating the experience of being at the
@Gothia_Cup
or the
@dallascup
✈️
Here are some more photos of our 2nd/3rd year training session yesterday! We started with the FIFA 11+ warm up followed by possession boxes & small sided games before going into the gym for the 2nd half of the session
It’s a busy week coming up for our Women’s squad!
✅ Training everyday as normal
✅ Sunderland FOL B vs
@Wath_Scholars
on Wednesday
✅
@THISGIRLKICKS
vs Sunderland FOL B on Friday! An opportunity for some of our players to experience their 1st overnight stay in the
@NFYLU19
!
Because of our pathway we also regularly train & play against/with
@SunderlandRTC
U16’s. It creates a high performance environment where everyone wants to be the best that they can be & challenges each other to improve!
Our Sunderland FOL A squad got back on track today with a 1-0 win against
@DurhamWFC
U19’s! This extends our lead at the top of the
@NFYLU19
Women’s North Premier Division to 9 points!
Well done girls!!
Why Choose Us?
✅ Level 3 BTEC in Sports Coaching & Development (equivalent to 3 A Levels)
✅ A Level options
✅ 10.5 hours of football per week
✅ Full squad International Tour each year
✅ Opportunity to trial for joint FOL/
@THISGIRLKICKS
team in
@dallascup
Finally, our hectic couple of days ended tonight with our
@SAFCFoL
Girls Academy U14’s playing Ponteland. Another exciting game ended in a 3-1 win to our U14’s! It is great to see how they have progressed this season!
Good luck to all those taking part in phase 2 England College's women's trials
@Lborocollege
on Saturday.
If you have any queries please email ian.barber
@aoc
.co.uk
Today our
@FoLWomens
squads &
@SAFCFoL
Girls Academy trained at
@SAFCAcademy
! What an experience for our players! It’s been a brilliant Pre-Season so far & there is more to come next week!
An excellent performance from our
@FoLWomens
squad today to get to the Quarter Finals of the
@NFYLU19U23
Cup! The players deserve so much credit for how much that they have improved this season!!
Our Sunderland FOL A squad were on 🔥 yesterday! Here is one of our goals from our 5-1 win in the
@NFYLU19
- scored by
@MaltaFA1900
U19 International
@Emma_ciantar
!!
The main session included a scanning game involving different coloured bibs, Man Utd game- 10v6 the 10 have to pass, run & combine-when the defender wins the ball they MUST run with it, a defending counter attack game & small sided games!
We currently have 2 students at
@BoroWomen
!
The first is 2nd year student
@MorrisonKatrena
. Katrena is athletic, technically very good on the ball & has the attributes to play in a number of positions! Katrena has a very promising future ahead!
We had 41 girls at our Open Training Session yesterday of a very high standard! The future is very bright! Our U14/16’s
@SAFCFoL
Girls Academy restart their Evening training & Friday Day Release Programme after Easter
Excellent day for our Women’s squads who had their graduation alongside our Boys Futsal squads today! It was good to celebrate our achievements over the last couple of years & recognise the amazing young people that we have on our program!