Scotland team qualify for cerebral palsy World Cup second stage
Team now faces favourites Iran
The Scotland team competing in the CPISRA (Cerebral Palsy International Sports and Recreation Association) Football Seven-a-Side World Championships has qualified for the second stage after finishing second in their group.
The team’s results of a 2-1 win against Argentina, a 6-0 defeat by Russia and a nil-nil draw against China on Saturday night saw the team finish in second place, behind Russia, on four points. Russia topped the group with nine points, Argentina had three points and China and one point.
And now the team face top seeds Iran on Tuesday and if they win that they will face Holland in the quarter finals.
So far the team only has one injury worry – Graham Paterson.
Coach and National Development Officer (Disability) Stuart Sharp said: “The team has done well so far, but we really want to make sure Graham is fit for the game as was our top goalscorer in the lead-up to the tournament.
“The games have gone well. We’ve played a strong British taking-the-game to the other team which the opposition don’t always like.
“The Russian result might look a little strange but that team train harder than most SPL teams. They are full-time, train twice-daily five times a week and spend two months abroad each year working on their skills. So in that context, our result wasn’t too bad – and we did contain them at times and it was a fantastic learning experience for us.
“Their coach was also impressed with the way we played against them and we’re hoping to play again in the future.
“Iran could be a tricky one as they are seeded number one, but we don’t think they are the best team here, so there’s every chance.”
One of the players – and goalscorer in the opening game - is Kwik-Fit Insurance worker, Jonathan Paterson, 23, from Motherwell – who is in Brazil after his work sponsored his trip to South America.
Jonathan said: “It’s been fantastic so far. We’ve played well and had some good results.
“The Russian result wasn’t the best but it was an incredible learning experience and we’ve picked up a few tricks that will come in handy for the Iran game.
“But I couldn’t have been here without Kwik-Fit Insurance letting me take a month off for it and sponsoring me with £1,000 to help towards the teams’ entry to the competition.”
Martin Oliver, Managing Director of Kwik-Fit Insurance added: “I'm not only delighted that the team have got through to the next round but that Kwik-Fit Insurance's Jonathan Paterson scored to get them there.
“It's a bit early to talk about winning it, but we can always dream - after all it's dreams that got the lads this far, so good luck to them as they keep flying the flag."