‘A small club from Manchester beating international teams. Unheard of…’
Many of those reading this won’t know much about CP United Football Club. In truth, the only reason we’re aware of their story is because of an email we received in the middle of June.
Sent by one of their players, 18-year-old Josh Power, the email explained how the club – situated in Partington, Manchester – had recently entered and won a tournament in Barcelona. Their achievement was made all the more remarkable by the fact they’d beaten a string of national sides on their way to a 2-1 victory over Chile in the final.
Having exchanged emails with Josh and his coach, we decided this was a story we had to share…
The ‘CP’ in the club’s name stands for Cerebral Palsy and all of its players live with the condition or acquired brain injuries. Having not even been in existence for three years, CP United currently have over 90 players registered to their 12 junior and adult sides.
“We established the club in November 2014 on the back of the FA withdrawing funding for elite Cerebral Palsy football for adult players,” explains Head Coach, Sean Bailey.
“Initially we created just the adult phase of one team as the FA maintained a funding commitment for 11 to 17 year olds, but this was just for elite players only so not accessible to all.”
Despite original plans to develop the club for adult players with Cerebral Palsy, significant interest from parents, carers and younger players prompted a rethink. After receiving a grant, the club’s founders re-budgeted to provide more opportunities for younger players, too.
“After that there was a snowball effect,” Sean adds. “We had a three year plan and nine months in from creation we had outgrown it.”
Although the club prides itself on being inclusive and providing opportunities, its growth has enabled it to become quite a force when it comes to competition. In May, prior to heading to Barcelona, their adult side retained their FA Disability Cup title at St George’s Park; they were also crowned CP National League champions.
In their short history, the club have become accustomed to domestic success. This year’s league and cup victories followed a treble a year earlier, and it was that achievement which earned them an invite to the FECPC International Trophy in Barcelona, a tournament which would prove to be their first taste of international success.
12 players made the trip to Barcelona along with four staff. Before reaching the final, they beat Jordan (4-1), Austria (6-0) and Ireland (6-0) to qualify from their group.
https://twitter.com/08azza/status/873965016080408577
By their own coach’s admission, CP United didn’t start too brightly in their opener against Jordan, despite eventually winning the game. A nod to the club’s Mancunian links and the recent terrorist attack on the Manchester Arena, Sean played them Tony Walsh’s This Is The Place poem to help motivate his players ahead of their second game against Austria. He followed this with Oasis’ Don’t Look Back In Anger.
“It is now our anthem and will stick with us,” Sean says. “I’ll be honest we had people in stands watching and they could hear it and saw the reaction of the team in the tunnel. It was a huge psychological gain for us!”
Having made it to the final, CP United faced Chile, a side that had qualified from a group containing Italy, Catalonia and Finland.
Overcoming temperatures of 31 degrees celsius and the sternest footballing test of their entire tournament, they were able to record a 2-1 victory, much to the delight of those watching a live stream of the final back at home.
Final whistle! Some very proud parents , coaches, volunteers & club mates #CPUnitedFanZone @FECPCint @CP_Sport @ifcpf pic.twitter.com/VcrL1uRHVJ
— Cerebral Palsy United FC (@CP_United_FC) June 11, 2017
There was only one way for the boys to celebrate their win…
@FISPES @FECPCint @ifcpf @azzurri @CP_United_FC @Futbol7Pc @oasis @FECPC @AndreaArgento
Complimenti ragazzi…alla prossima💪🏼💪🏼🇮🇹 pic.twitter.com/BNa4JZtri3— andrea augimeri (@andaugi) June 15, 2017
Their on-field achievements in the last year have contributed to the club being named as the Charter Standard Development Club of the Year by the Manchester FA. They have followed this with success at regional level, winning the North-West’s Charter Standard Development Club category, before being confirmed as winners of the National Charter Standard Development Club award.
Sean explains that CP United will be in Barcelona to defend their FECPC title next summer. Since winning the 2017 tournament, the club have received an offer to tour Italy and have even been invited to play in Chile. For now though, long-haul tours such as this are out of reach.
The trip to Barcelona was entirely self-funded, with the club raising money for it by holding a sponsored 12-hour spin session at their training base. While the chance to send a team to South America is clearly an incredible opportunity for a club that is yet to celebrate its third birthday, it simply isn’t their priority just yet.
“We have to get back to ensuring the club is sustainable and that we can actually put sessions on,” Sean explains.
“We genuinely care about the welfare of each player who walks through our doors. We’ve seen children arrive on a walking frame and six weeks later not use them again! This is all through the power of football.”
1) Great to see this little fella back in action on Saturday after his big operation @tommyloc85 ⚽ pic.twitter.com/eT1AsHoTiK
— Cerebral Palsy United FC (@CP_United_FC) July 10, 2017
Any plans to send teams across the Atlantic might have to wait for now, but those involved with the club are clear about what they want to achieve next. With their teams currently made up of players from all around the North-West – with one player recently registering from Nottingham – Sean explains that the club hope to expand to a point where players no longer have to travel far to be a part of a Cerebral Palsy-specific football session.
“We want to grow the club so we have a presence throughout the North West where children can access what we deliver locally. Right now some children travel long distances on a Saturday just for one hour of football.”
Sean admits that such targets will remain out of reach without commercial investment in the club. As their website explains, the club currently relies on sponsorship, donations, and accessing various pots of funding. They also hold their own fundraising events, just as they did ahead of the Barcelona trip.
“The commercial side of the club is where we lack as we’re all football people,” he says. “I’m an accountant by day so I complete the budgets and manage the finances but everyone else works in sport. Commercial exposure isn’t our area of expertise. This is preventing the growth and investment we need.”
Thanks very much to Josh for getting in touch with JOE and sharing CP United’s story with us. For more information about the club, please visit their website.
To donate to the club, please email info@cpunited.co.uk or visit cpunited.co.uk/donations for more information.
