Talented Cardigan girl making an impact.
Kelsey Thomas celebrated her birthday this week on the same day as her football hero Rinaldo and although she has not set her sights quite as high as one of the most famous sporting icons on the planet, she is definitely a young athlete who is going places. Writes Julie John.
The Cardigan Secondary Schoolgirl is already making an impact on the sporting front and not in just one discipline as she is a talented all-rounder who appears to have a bright future in whatever she decides to do.
The football mad daughter of Cardigan postman Clive Thomas and his partner Natalie, Kelsey is already a member of the Swansea City Academy and she plays regularly against the likes of Queens Park Rangers, Portsmouth, Swindon Town and Portsmouth.
However, there is another string to the bow of this energetic twelve year old as only this week she qualified for the Dyfed Cross Country running team after coming second in the Dyfed Championships.
She waltzed through the Ceredigion Cross Country (year 7) qualifying heats, the previous week, running from the front and she was just beaten by Ella Wintle of Ysgol Preseli in the three counties event this week, which were held at Llandeilo .
The competition was far tougher against the cream of Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire and Camarthenshire but Kelsey managed to keep in touch with Wintle all the way around the arduous course in the heavy conditions and her runners up spot earned her a place in the Dyfed Schools team which will compete in the Welsh Championships in Brecon next month.
Football though is the number one sport for Kelsey, and she has achieved a great deal since she first kicked a ball around with her dad in the garden at about seven years of age. From there she went on to play for Cardigan Town juniors and then had trials for the West Wales Performance Centre.
Very soon after she was chosen for the u12’s as there was no team for her age group and she was more than comfortable playing with young kids four years her senior. Kelsey attended a football camp in Swansea and was identified by the Head coach of the Ladies Swansea City Football Team as having great potential for the future.
Last summer Kelsey was picked to attend the Welsh U13’s regional squad at Dragon Park, Newport – a 2 day camp, which she continues to attend when the camps are organised on a quarterly basis.
Kelsey has played for the South Ceredigion Girls team in the Central Wales FA Regional Cup, which she has been part of the winning team for the past 3 years.
She also plays for Johnstown U12’s and also when available plays for Aberporth.
But she is quick to point out that you only get out what you put into sport and you have to practice if you want to play against the best and she has to attend weekly two hour training sessions in Swansea on a Friday night.
She also trains with the West Wales Performance centre on a Monday evening, and with local team Aberporth on a Thursday and in between she has to fit all her home work in!
She even manages to fit in a session of Cavegirl Training on a Tuesday night which she thoroughly enjoys.
Kelsey is packing a great deal into her busy life and Sportsline wishes her well in whatever she does and we will be keeping an eye out on her progress.
