Northern Ireland’s Powerchair team are gearing up to take part in the European Powerchair Football Association Nations Cup in Italy this month.
The matches will be taking place at Bella Italia Village in Lignano Sabbiadoro and there’s an added incentive for the Northern Ireland team to do well at the tournament as the European Championships also serve as World Cup qualifiers, with the top five teams earning a place at the global finals in Argentina next year.
Northern Ireland will be facing world champions France, Belgium, Spain and Germany in Group A.
Defending European champions England are in Group B with Denmark, Republic of Ireland, Scotland and hosts Italy.
Northern Ireland coach Michael Hilland has named a seven-strong panel for the tournament, with four players retaining their places from the World Cup in Australia in 2023.
Northern Ireland finished fifth when making their inaugural Nations Cup appearance in Finland in 2019 before following that up with a ninth place finish on the world stage out in Australia.
Their latest European adventure kicks off against France next Friday (19 September) at 19:00 BST following the opening ceremony.
Northern Ireland then face Germany the following day (17:30 BST) and Belgium on Sunday 21 September (17:15 BST). They will complete the group stage against Spain on Monday 23 September (15:30 BST).
The top two from each group advance to the semi-finals and automatic World Cup qualification.
The teams finishing third and fourth in each group will play off for the final World Cup slot.
Hilland said: “We’re all looking forward to going out and testing ourselves against the best teams on the continent.
“We’re bringing a young squad but there is a blend of experience and fresh faces. All of the players have shown great quality and focus in our preparation and there is a real buzz among the group as we edge towards the first game.
“I couldn’t be happier with the commitment and work ethic the players have shown in training as they get ready to face the high level opposition we have been drawn against.”
The Northern Ireland Powerchair squad for the EPFA tournament features: Bartek Kuszowski, Scott Hilland (captain), Patrick Cumiskey, Sean McKinney, Ethan McCabe, Reuben Walls, Kyle Forster.
