Foyle Cup to rest by the banks of the river Boyne

Northern Ireland has proved to be a happy hunting ground for the North Eastern Counties Schoolboys' League (NECSL) in terms of silverware and last Saturday the u-16 representative team caused a major upset when they defeated a highly-regarded Queens Park Rangers team in the final of the Foyle Cup at the Brandywell. "This was an excellent performance by the players and I'm very proud of what they achieved, it's the first time the NECSL has won the main competition," team manager Noel Hand told the Meath Chronicle. The five-day tournament catered for teams at all age levels. This year the NECSL competed in the u-16 competition which featured top English teams like QPR, Hull City, Everton academy as well as top clubs from Dublin like St Kevin's Boys. The first trophy that the NECSL won was the u-16 Erne Cup in Enniskillen in 1996 when they defeated Dundalk Schoolboys' League in the final. Denis Kealy from Dunshaughlin was the captain of that team Last Saturday, the NECSL added another trophy to their cabinet when they beat the English team 5-4 on penalties following a thrilling final that was played in front of a large crowd. The Foyle Cup takes place in Derry City and surrounding towns annually and this was the 18th year of the competition. Teams from the NECSL have competed in the competition since 1997 and once again this year were based at the University of Ulster campus. The panel consisted of 18 players and each one had to contribute €325 towards the cost of competing in the tournament as the panel was based in Derry for six days. Last Tuesday, the NECSL opened their campaign with a scoreless draw against Newhill FC. The only negative incident from the first game was the fact that Kingscourt player Jack Sheenan sustained a broken ankle and was brought to hospital locally. The following day (Wednesday) the NECSL got off the mark with a fine performance against the Everton Academy which produced a 3-0 victory. They bettered that with a 5-0 margin against the Belfast side from the Bertie Peacock Academy. They then faced top Dublin side St Kevin's Boys in the semi-final where they recorded a 1-0 victory. In the final on Saturday against a QPR side that included two players from Chelsea and Man Utd and one from Liverpool, the NECSL created a number of good chances with both Jonathan Coleman and John Murray going close while goalkeeper Paul Lynch made a fantastic late save to keep his team in the game. The tie went straight to penalties and QPR went first. Both sides were on target with Daniel Hand, Oisin Reilly, Enda Flanagan and Ryan O'Reilly on target for the NECSL boys. QPR missed their fifth spot kick which put the pressure on Ballyjamesduff player Aodan McFarlane who duly converted. RESULTS First round - NECSL 0, Newhill FC 0; QPR 4, Glentoran 0. Second round - NECSL 3, Everton Academy 0; QPR 1, Ballymoney Utd 0. Third round - NECSL 5, Bertie Peacock Academy (Belfast) 0; QPR 2, Donegal 1. Semi-finals - NECSL 1, St Kevin's Boys 0; QPR 2, Hull City 1. Final - NECSL 0, QPR 0, 5-4 pens. Panel Dean Hosie, Obakeng Pilane, Dylan Regan (Parkvilla); Danny Connell, Dean Courtney, Paul Lynch (Trim Celtic); Ryan O'Reilly, Oisin Reilly (Kells / Blackwater); Jack Clancy, John Murray (Raistin Rovers); Aodan McFarlane, Enda Flanagan, Lindo Majola, Philip Clarke (Ballyjamesduff); Michael Argue, Jonathan Coleman (Carrick Rovers); Daniel Hand, Jack Sheenan (Kingscourt Harps).