Courtesy: The Macleay Argus


Charlie selected to represent Australia on tour of Barcelona

by Callum McGregor

APRIL 26 2018

Kempsey’s Charlie Norton had just claimed the national futsal title with her Northern NSW Under-12 teammates, but her day was about to get a whole lot better.

The 12-year-old was notified she was selected into the Australian Futsal side to tour Barcelona in November this year.

The opportunity of a lifetime will pit Charlie against the best futsal players in Spain.

The schedule for the team hasn’t been finalised but Charlie expects to face off against plenty of sides during the two-week tour.

The young competitor can’t wait for the trip and is excited for the challenge.

“The local teams in Spain are all very good, they grow up playing futsal and don’t play on full size fields until they’re 12,” Charlie told the Argus.

“They are really suited to futsal and they will be hard to beat, but it will be great to compare the level of play between us and them and gain that experience.

“It will be a struggle but nothing comes easy.”

The Football Mid North Coast representative began playing futsal last year to maintain her fitness throughout the off-season.

In preparation for the trip, Charlie will continue to train with the Emerging Jets Under-12s squad and will have a football at her feet as much as she can.

“I want to play my best over there and hopefully get selected into more representative sides,” Charlie said.

“I will be doing lots of training between now and heading to Spain.”

The selection into the Australian Futsal side comes after Charlie’s family made the move south to Newcastle to help further the 12-year-old’s sporting career.

To help with the costs of the tour, there will be a Charity Bowls Day/Fundraiser on July 22 at the Kempsey Macleay RSL Bowling Club.

There will be lots of fun filled activities for the whole family and a special thank you from the family goes to major sponsors Ezy Waste Group, Chaddies Store, Harley & Rose Lifestyle and Fashion, Keystone Health and LJ Hooker - Kempsey.

Charlie’s family has also set up a Go Fund Me page: https://www.gofundme.com/lets-get-charlie-to-barcelona.

Charlie’s mother, Donna, can be contacted on 0401 281 045 for more information on how to help get Charlie to Barcelona.



Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com