Jorvik MIST 2001 was host to the first MIST Football Cup, a friendly, but competitive 5-a-side football competition between teams drawn from the four corners of the UK (NORTH, SOUTH, EAST and WEST). The competition comprised two semi-finals, a third-place match, and a final, the prize being the glorious MIST cup trophy.
The first semi-final involved the team from the NORTH (comprised of the Scottish ladies and Sheffield lads), against the team from the EAST (comprised entirely of BAS players). The game started off tight, EAST having a 1-0 lead at half time through Andy Lawrence, despite a battling defensive performance from the NORTH team. In the second half, the organisation of Andy Lawrence and Mervyn Freeman in the EAST midfield began to show and EAST added 5 more goals (two more from Andy Lawrence, two from Gareth Chisham, and one from Mervyn Freeman), to convincingly seal the semi-final 6-0.
The second semi-final involved the team from the SOUTH (comprised of players from Imperial College, MSSL and Southampton), against the team from the WEST (a melange of players from Aberystwyth and those famous western institutions Leicester, York, Imperial College, and Southampton). This game also proved tight at first, Mick Denton scoring first for WEST; the post-goal celebrations bringing chastising words from alert keeper Mark Lester. SOUTH equalised before half-time, but two second half goals from Ian Mann sealed a 3-1 win for WEST, taking them into the final.
NORTH and SOUTH then played off for the third place. This proved a tight, pulsating game with chances at both ends, but the final finishing proved lacking. The best chance of a goal fell to Betty Lanchester, late in the second half. On the edge of the area, with only the goalkeeper to beat Betty was cynically floored by an unseen opponent. The game finished 0-0, which set up a tense sudden-death penalty shoot-out. After four misses apiece, it was left to the goalkeepers to decide the fate of the game. NORTH keeper Dave Milling coolly slotted home against opposite number Joe Matthews. Joe could not do the same against Dave and so NORTH took the third-place prize.
The final proved a hard battle between WEST and EAST. The EAST team created the most chances but their finishing was poor. There was also an outstanding save from veteran keeper Mark Lester in the WEST goal after a blistering shot from Mervyn Freeman. In the end, the teamwork of Mick Denton and Ian Mann for the WEST team exploited the poor tactics of the EAST team, breaking clean through the EAST defences on two occasions, one of which led to a tap-in goal from Ian Mann. WEST held on stoically to their 1-0 lead to complete a deserved win. The MIST Cup was presented to the WEST team at the conference dinner at the York Merchant Adventurers' Hall. The experience of the first MIST Cup was greatly enjoyed by all involved.