Sunderland AFC on course for Wembley double

Year seven and eight girls from St Joseph's Catholic Academy are one step closer to Wembley Stadium after winning the regional heat of a national competition. The youngsters, representing Sunderland AFC, travelled to Teesside this week for the North Area finals of the EFL Girls Cup where they faced teams from Barnsley, Grimsby Town, Hull City, Leeds United and Scunthorpe United at hosts Middlesbrough's Herlingshaw Centre. Overcoming Kirk Balk Academy (Barnsley) in the final, the girls will now travel to Leeds next month for the opportunity to play at the home of English football before March's Checkatrade Trophy Final which will hopefully feature Sunderland AFC's first team.

The team have done fantastically well to reach the next stage of the competition, winning through against some very tough teams. We'd like to congratulate everyone who took part and Middlesbrough Foundation for hosting successful event which was a great advert for girls' football.

Helen Edwards, Premier League Primary Stars Events Coordinator

The EFL Girls Cup comprises of a six-a-side competition for U13 girls which sees over 6,000 girls taking part every year.