OVINGHAM Middle School is celebrating following a number of sporting successes.

The school’s U13 girls’ nine-a-side football team are through to the quarter-finals of the English Schools Football Association (ESFA) U13 Competition after beating Cardinal Heenan Catholic School 3-2 last week.

The ESFA U13 Competition started with 431 teams, and the Ovingham girls are now in the seventh round of the competition.

The team will play Alder Grange School from Lancashire on Friday, February 28 with a chance to book a place in the semi finals, marking it an amazing achievement for such a small school.

Elsewhere, Ovingham Middle’s U12 girls’ team won the area five-a-side competition, beating Highfield, Hexham and Bellingham middle schools

The victory means the girls progressed to the county finals at the Soccerdome at Royal Quays.

The team played a round robin tournament and defeated Ponteland, Newminster, Sacred Heart and George Stephenson comfortably.

The girls only conceded one goal in the whole tournament, and were crowned worthy county champions.

They then progressed to the regional finals in Durham, representing Northumberland. The girls won three of their five matches, narrowly missing out on the runners-up spot on goal difference..

There was also success for the Year 7 and 8 indoor athletics team at the area championships, held at Prudhoe High School.

The pupils were competing against other schools in the West Tyne area in shot putt, long jump, triple jump, speed bounce and a range of different sprint relays.

There was a separate competition for boys and girls and for year 7 and year 8 pupils. Ovingham Middle School won both the boys’ and girls’ competitions at Year 7 and Year 8 and all four teams now progress to the county finals.