EVESHAM United Under 9s reached the last 16 of the highly competitive Diamond Cup tournament staged at Rushden & Diamonds FC last Sunday.

Teams from all over the country had travelled to Northamptonshire for the event at which, fresh from their success in the Mercian League, United's eight-man squad were unbeaten in the group stages, defeating teams from Lancashire, Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire and Huntingdonshire.

However, in the knockout stages they came up against eventual winners, Nunnery Wood, who held them to a 1-1 draw before going through on penalties.

The squad of James Bearcroft, Leon Ballard, Owen Jones, Craig Whiting, Sam Ford, Andrew Powell, Louis Brown and Henry Woods did Evesham proud and won many fans with their stylish brand of play.

The side scored ten goals and conceded just two in their six matches, with Woods finding the net six times. Ford added three more and Powell the tenth.