Team Northants enjoys another strong showing at PSUK Women’s Football Championship

17 July 2026

One of the standout events on the Police Sport UK (PSUK) calendar brought together Federation members earlier this year for the annual Women’s Football Championship.

A familiar face at the tournament, Northamptonshire Police Football Club (NPFC) once again joined forces from across the country, with Northumbria Police hosting this year’s competition.

An 11-player squad travelled to the Leisure United Ford sports complex in Sunderland, where teams competed across a packed and action-filled weekend schedule.

In total, 19 teams representing 16 forces battled for the Championship title. Hosts Northumbria Police ultimately lifted the trophy on home turf after edging past Merseyside Police in a dramatic penalty shootout final.

Although NPFC did not progress to the latter stages, long-serving player and manager DC Corina Edghill said the tournament once again proved to be ‘a lot of fun for everyone involved’.

 

Northamptonshire Police Women's Football Club

 

“As expected, the weekend delivered as one of the biggest meet-ups in police sport, and it was great to see so many officers and staff come together once again,” Corina said. 

“Wherever it’s being held, it’s always a privilege to go to the tournament and be part of what is essentially a huge festival of football over the course of two days.

“For me, it’s the one opportunity I get a year to connect with so many policing colleagues from all over the country, in an environment away from work, which allows us to switch off and socialise.

“I think this is something really healthy for those in our profession to do, so I always try to make the most of it when it comes around.”

Wellbeing benefits

In addition to these wellbeing benefits, Corina says she and her teammates took satisfaction in their success on the pitch.

During the tournament’s initial phase, which split all sides into two concurrent leagues, NPFC claimed two victories before the top four from each division advanced to a knockout stage.

“As I’ve already alluded to, we tend to take a lot more from matters than purely competing, but we were still generally happy with how we did up against some very talented players and teams,” she continued.

“It’s worth remembering that not even a decade ago, there wasn’t even an active women’s football team in our force - it had to be built back up from scratch, which I was proud to play a part in.

Represent the Force

“I’ve been involved ever since as a player and helping to manage and organise our activity, and the best thing for us is being able to represent our Force at these events on a regular basis.

“For the last couple of years, this tournament has switched from 11-a-side to 7-a-side, which does make it easier for us to guarantee we can enter and arguably make the whole thing a better experience from that perspective.”

Next up for the women’s side of NPFC, who typically play in a handful of matches and tournaments a year, is likely to be involvement in an Emergency Services Football League (ESFL) competition in September.

And according to Corina, many people's attention may already have turned to the 2027 PSUK Women’s Football Championship, which is set to be hosted by Devon and Cornwall Police.

Next year

“I know for certain I am already looking forward to going down south next year, and I’d imagine other people are feeling the same,” Corina continued.

She ended: “There’s a reason why we keep wanting to go back for more - the tournament gives everyone a chance to boost their mental health and decompress together through sport. In our job and all of its unique pressures, that’s worth a great deal.”

You can track all the Force’s footballing activity across the women’s, men’s and veterans’ sides by following NPFC on Instagram.

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