A RENFREW youngster captained Great Britain at the recent Under-13 AMF Futsal World Cup in Barcelona.

Cooper Knox, 13, came through a number of trials earlier this year to earn selection to the World Cup squad that competed in Spain.

The former Newmains Primary School pupil, who now attends Boclair Academy as part of Glasgow Rangers’ player performance programme, impressed U-13 futsal boss Liam Andrews enough at trials in Wales and Birmingham to be named team captain.

Starting at local side Cherrie Boys as a five-year-old, Knox was picked up by St Mirren’s Academy, where his talent was later recognised by Rangers scouts, and now trains daily with the Glasgow giants at the Hummel Training Centre.

Taking up the discipline of futsal back in 2017, Knox has quickly become one of the best young players in the country, going on to captain his side in a number of tournaments in France, Italy, Holland and Czech Republic.

READ MORE: Ava reaches new heights as she secures GB climbing squad spot

And with the likes of Brazil, Italy, Argentina and France all competing in Spain, the World Cup was another steep learning curve for the Renfrew lad and his GB team-mates, with Paraguay running out eventual winners.

Drawn to face pre-tournament favourites Paraguay in their group, along with Colombia and Switzerland, Knox and his team fell to a 10-6 loss against Colombia in their opening match.

Team GB showed signs of improvement in their second outing, however, with an 8-4 win over the Swiss youngsters before coming up against eventual winners Paraguay, losing 17-0.

The British side finished joint second in their group but didn’t progress to the quarter-finals due to an inferior goal difference.

Derek Knox, Cooper’s dad, said: “Even though they didn’t progress, Cooper and the boys had a great time. It was a great learning experience for the whole team and something they can take into future matches and tournaments.”

Read all the latest from Gazette Sport