BLACKBURN Rovers were proud just to be asked to host the area finals of the Kinder + Sport Girls’ Futsal Cup – but the side then went one further and actually won the competition.

An 8-2 victory over Bolton Wanderers in the Lancashire area final of the Football League Trust competition – hosted at the Blackburn Rovers Indoor Centre – means that the club are now one step closer to even more glory, with Rovers now taking on the best of the north in next month’s regional finals.

The team from St Bede’s RC High School won the club’s qualifying heats to represent the hallowed blue and white halves in this season’s event, and when pitched against the region’s best opponents in the area finals, they showed they were a class above with some stunning displays.

Derby rivals Accrington Stanley, Blackpool, Preston North End and Wigan Athletic were also part of the six-team competition held over the course of Friday and Monday, but despite some quality futsal skills across the entire field, none quite matched the combination of individual flair and tactical knowledge shown by the team coached by John Turner.

Their reward is a chance to head to Derby for the regional finals with the top teams from that encounter heading through to the national finals in March and the chance to call themselves the country’s best.

Andy Aspinall, women and girls’ development officer for Blackburn Rovers Community Trust, is delighted that the club can enjoy another female success story.

He said: “Women’s football seems to be on the crest of a wave in the north west at the moment, as you can see from the quality of the tournament we’ve just hosted, and we’re so pleased to see that another one of our teams is leading the way in our area.

“The girls from St Bede’s did a great job and looked in total control in the final.

"So we are proud to see the way they’ve taken to this ever-growing version of the sport.

“Coming just over a week after Greenbank High School won the same stage of the Kinder + Sport Girls Cup for the club, it is proving to be a brilliant season for the female game here in Blackburn.”

Any girls looking to take their first steps in football can head along to the Girls’ Football Development Centre, which is hosted at the Blackburn Rovers Indoor Centre every Friday from 5pm-6pm.

It is aimed at giving girls aged five to seven the perfect introduction to the game.