A NEW girls’ football team in Basingstoke is celebrating after being sponsored by a family-run hair salon to buy new kit.

Hoping to attract new players on the back of the success of the England women’s football team at the Euros, Winklebury Wizards Football Club has launched a new under 10s girls team.

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The team, who meet at the Hampshire FA ground in Winklebury, has been sponsored by Hair Beauty in Oakley to buy their kit.

Guy Morgan, the team’s coach, said that although Winklebury Wizards has been going for more than 20 years, there has only ever been one girls’ team for under 14s.

The dad, whose eight-year-old step-daughter loves playing football, was keen to set up a new girls’ team to offer the sport to a wider age range of girls in the town.

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So far, 12 girls have joined the team and it is hoped more will be inspired to sign up following the success of the England team this summer.

Guy said: “Off the back of the Euros it’s great to have a second team and we’re going to play in the Hampshire Girls Youth League which has four divisions. So, there are about 40 teams.”

Guy believes Hampshire is leading the way when it comes to girls’ football, and he hopes that schools and parents will support girls to play.

“Years ago, girls didn’t play football,” he said, adding: “I think Hampshire really do push it, as a county we are one of the main advocates for girls’ football.

“I’ve been in girls’ football for two years now at grass roots level. We started at Down Grange and moved to Winklebury and in that two years I’ve watched it grow from six or seven girls to now having teams across Basingstoke.”

The 38-year-old, who is an operations manager for a housing association, said he hopes that one day girls playing football will be the norm, adding: “Slowly and surely, we are moving in the direction of it being normal. So, boys watch girls play football and that’s normal. The more we can do as a club and as a town to make girls feel celebrated when they get involved and give them the confidence to keep going. We try to start them as young as we can so to them it’s always the norm. Everyone – parents, teachers and coaches – we have to all do our bit.”

For more information visit winkleburywizards.co.uk.