Disability football cup final weekend to showcase sport and break barriers

Sam Smith is the James Milner of powerchair football. “I’ve sort of had that nickname for a bit,” he says. “I’m reliable, I’m versatile and I can play in different positions. I think I’m always a seven out of 10 and the lads in our team are pretty quiet while I’m always talking. So yeah, I’ve been likened to Milner, which has its positives. I’m not the flair player but every team needs someone like me.”

Alongside his Northern Thunder teammates, Smith is set to take on West Bromwich Albion on Sunday in the Powerchair cup final. The Baggies are the sport’s dominant team, and the Thunder the only team to have beaten them this season. It’s not a grudge match – there are England teammates on both sides – but it’s an intense rivalry and will be just one story played out over the FA Disability Cup Finals weekend.

In a showcase of the best of disability football, six cup finals will be held in front of crowds at St George’s Park and shown live on BT Sport over Saturday and Sunday. Partially sighted, blind, deaf, cerebral palsy, powerchair and amputee versions of the game will be given an unprecedented showcase, and those involved in each variation hope it will help to continue a sense of growth and progress.

Smith’s relationship with football goes back a long way. Born in Newcastle, he was diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy aged three and unable to walk by the age of 10, bringing an end to a youthful love affair with what he calls “the running game”. But after his father was handed a leaflet advertising powerchair football, Smith found a new passion.

“There was a year when I was a bit lost, watching my friends and my brothers play after school and unable to join them,” he says. “But then I found powerchair football and