England men’s Blind squad have booked their place in the IBSA Nations Cup knockout stage after an unbeaten group stage campaign.
Albion players Eesa Amjid, Kieran Clarke, Efe Shimwell and Toby Addison have all represented the Para Lions at the international tournament in India.
England beat Korea Republic, Italy, Poland and India en route to their place in the knockout round, while they also managed a draw against a strong Iran side – who they will take on in the final.
Adam Bendall’s team beat the Korean Republic 6-0 in their opening game. Baggies forward Amjid grabbed a brace either side of half-time to seal an important first win at the United Sports Centre.
On day two, the Para Lions were held to a goalless draw by Iran in an entertaining game, where both goalkeepers proved their worth.
Saturday morning saw last season’s National Blind Football League top scorer Shimwell grab the only goal of the game during a tight encounter against Italy.
India gave our England internationals an early scare in their fourth game as they found themselves a goal down. Though strikes from Amjid and Shimwell turned the match around to seal a third win from four matches.
A 2-0 victory over Poland polished off a group stage to remember, with Shimwell at the double – setting up an exciting final tie with Iran, which will be played on Wednesday, October 1 (12:30pm).
You can watch that fixture over on the IBSA YouTube channel by clicking HERE.
