A SCHOOL is toasting a managerial mastermind after the girls football team reached a national final -- and a chance of winning a minibus.

Moorland County High School, Holden Fold, Darwen, will save thousands of pounds if the Year 7 girls win the English Schools' Football Association Wagon Wheels Cup on April 13.

Last week they won the North West section in Manchester to reach the final at the JJB Soccer Dome in Wigan.

The team has beaten more than 20 teams to reach this stage, even setting a record for Year 7 by hammering a Rochdale school 13-0.

The fortunes of girls' football at the school has turned around since a class support assistant took charge of the teams a year ago.

Since then, Caroline Reed has had just one defeat in more than 100 games and is described by colleagues as the female Alex Ferguson. Caroline, who has obtained her Football Association coaching badges, gives hours of her free time every week to train the girls, many of whom have very little soccer knowledge.

She said: "They all get a chance, as long as they enjoy it, and they just seem to pick it up as they go along.

"We are patient with them, but they do listen.

"They have done well to reach the final because we have played so many good teams along the way." The school is yet to find out who they will face in the final, but staff are already dreaming of winning the minibus.

Erika Rogerson, head of PE at Moorland, said the school needed transport at the moment.

She added: "We have to share a bus, but if we win we will keep it in the PE department and give permission for others to borrow it! I can't believe we will be in with a chance of winning a minibus. Since taking over, Caroline has proved to be the Alex Ferguson of girl's football -- she is really dedicated and puts a lot of hours in to run several teams."