Dungannon Under 11’s boys and girls travelled to England last week to take part in The English Cup at the Shrewsbury International Tournament.

               

Both teams played under the Dungannon Swifts name. The boys started their campaign on the Monday when they were put into a group section with: Maiden City Juniors FC, Walsall, North Powys Development Centre, Bangor and Aston Villa.

 

They came through this group undefeated with 3 wins and 2 draws. Very quickly both the coaches and the players realised that they were playing in a tournament that had a very high standard of football.

 

Soccer players who played in this cup and went on to play professional football include: Steven Gerrard, Jamie Carragher, Owen Hargreaves and Andriy Shevchenko.

 

After successfully topping their group the Dungannon Swift Boys were places in another qualifying group where they played another 3 teams – one of which were Blackpool – the favourites and last years beaten finalists.

 

Once again the Dungannon lads raised their game and won this group undefeated.

 

Friday brought the final where our lads met Blackpool FC. Even though Dungannon beat them in the qualifying round 3 – 2. they were still considered the underdogs, but with good managerial tactics by Pudgie Robinson, Aidan Coleman and Joe McAree, the boys came out with their usual determination and never say die attitude.

 

The final was refereed by International and Premiership Referee, Dermot Gallagher. The boys got off to a fantastic start and at half time were leading 3 – 0 with goals scored by Ryan Coleman (2) and Stevie Corr (1). The second half saw Blackpool put Dungannon Swifts under a lot of pressure but they could not break down a solid defence. Further goals in the second half were scored by Ryan Stinson and Stevie Corr.

 

The final whistle blew to great celebrations from the coaches, players and supporters who had travelled to watch the boys.

 

When asked, Coaches Pudgie Robinson and Aidan Coleman, said that all the boys put in a fantastic effort but they awarded the Player of the Tournament to both Captain Stevie Corr and Paul Donaghy, who both displayed tremendous football over the five day tournament.

 

The boys received the Cup from ex Welsh International Manager Mike Smith.

 

The players who competed in this competition were:

Stevie Corr, Enda McAleer, Naoise Martin, Paul Donaghy, Shea Gordon, Mark Donnelly, Niall McIlroy, Ryan Coleman, Ryan Moore, Craig Gibson, Connor Cullen and Ryan Stinson.

 

This competition hopefully gives the boys a solid foundation for their forthcoming season in the National League. Congratulations on your performances and fantastic win boys and good luck for the season ahead!

 

Sarah Winslow, Judith Reid and Sophie McIvor (Coaches) took a team of girls to play in the Under 11 Girls Competition.

 

This was the first time the Dungannon Girls had played overseas and like the boys, quickly knew they were playing against tough opposition.

 

The girls topped their group after matches against Frankwell Wanderers, where they won 11 – 0 with goals from Samantha Kelly (3), Rachel Kelly (3), Alex Lavery (2), Emily Salley (2) and Alanna Mc Mullan (1).

 

Their second match was against Madely United which finished with a 2 – 2 draw with both Dungannon goals being scored by Emily Salley.

 

Their final group match was against Llanymynech Lemurs which the Dungannon girls won 1 – 0 thanks to a goal by Sam Kelly and a fantastic penalty save by Rachel Kelly which resulted in her fracturing her wrist! (Wishing you a speedy recovery Rachel).

Friday afternoon saw them take on a very strong and experienced Welsh Team C.Y.P. The girls produced a fantastic performance but struggled to gain control of the match against a much bigger and physically stronger opposition.

 

The Dungannon girls lost this match 5 – 0, but this was no disgrace against the quality of the Welsh Team. Well done girls!

 

The coaches had a tough decision to make as to who would be awarded the Player of the Tournament as all the girls played with skill, grit and a will to win that belied their young ages, but eventually they decided that the Player of the Tournament Award should be awarded to both Laura Roberts and Eden Lavery. Congratulations!

 

The team that represented Dungannon girls were:

Alanna McMullan, Kerry McMullan, Tara Donaghy, Rachel Kelly, Samantha Kelly, Claire Davison, Eden Lavery, Alex Lavery, Laura Roberts and Emily Salley.