Girls’ football training sessions are set to continue beyond Christmas at Ulverston Leisure Centre, as they have remained popular despite the shortening days and plummeting temperatures.

The sessions were first introduced towards the end of September on the 3G pitches next to the Tennis Centre for girls aged five and above for an initial run until half-term the following month and those who attended have kept on coming.

They are currently taking place at 4:45pm every Friday and the hope remains that their popularity will grow enough to introduce separate training for girls aged 5-7 and those aged eight and above, so they can play alongside those at a similar stage of development.

Active communities co-ordinator Hannah Paling, who is helping to coach the young girls, said: “We thought we’d keep running sessions until Christmas because the girls seemed to enjoy it.

“We wanted to try and start a session for the younger age groups, but that hasn’t taken off yet and that is something that I’m going to look into.

“We decided to run five sessions before Christmas and we’ve tended to have seven or eight girls come down, so it’s gone really well and the girls have enjoyed it.

“We’re hoping to carry on in the New Year and we’re hoping to get something running for the younger age groups because it’s better for them to play with children of a similar age.

“You don’t really want a five-year-old playing with a nine-year-old because it’s not good for either of them.”

One potential benefit of growing the sessions is getting more girls in playing for clubs in not just the Furness area but in the North West in general.

Local side Ulverston Rangers have an under-13 team performing very well in the South Lakes Girls League at present and with Paling’s connection to the women’s game, there is a new pathway into football for the juniors who take part.

Paling said: “The idea isn’t to start a team up, it’s to offer some sessions. There are restrictions as to when we can use the 3G pitch because we’ve got a lot of clubs who use it for training, especially at this time of year.

“But the idea is, obviously, to get girls playing and give them an exit route to go and play for Ulverston Rangers, or any of the local clubs nearby.

“I play for Morecambe myself and there is a junior set-up there, so I’ve even got a contact that way where if they’re interested and if their parents are willing to travel then they can be pointed in that direction.”