Big Pat gives free football kits to Coleraine Academy

Grassroots football club, Coleraine Academy, were joined by a special guest this month, as former Arsenal, Tottenham and Northern Ireland goalkeeping hero Pat Jennings made a surprise appearance to the club.
Pat with McDonalds Coleraine Franchisee Bruce Baillie and members of Coleraine Academy FC.Pat with McDonalds Coleraine Franchisee Bruce Baillie and members of Coleraine Academy FC.
Pat with McDonalds Coleraine Franchisee Bruce Baillie and members of Coleraine Academy FC.

He joined McDonald’s Coleraine Franchisee Bruce Baillie to handover the new stylish set of threads, donated to the team as part of the McDonald’s Irish FA Accredited Club Kit Scheme, which is now in its second year.

The Club are delighted to be benefitting from the new community programme, which, run in partnership with The Irish FA and their official kit supplier Adidas, enables clubs with a junior team the opportunity to order a brand new Adidas strip every year for the next three seasons. The scheme distributed over 2,100 strips to clubs across Northern Ireland in the first year alone and aims to help raise the standards of grassroots football for young aspiring footballers.

McDonald’s Head of Northern Ireland Football, Pat Jennings said: “Coleraine Academy is a fantastic club which has the support of volunteers that clearly have a passion for football. It is great that the club can offer so many young people the opportunity to play football. We cannot underestimate the importance of grassroots football for both the men’s and the women’s game. It is vital that we look to support grassroots volunteers and clubs as much as possible.”

Bruce Baillie owns and operates the McDonald’s restaurant in Coleraine, he said:

Grassroots clubs such as Coleraine Academy invest an incredible amount of time providing their local communities with footballing opportunities. They provide young people with the chance to get involved and feel part of a team. It’s important that businesses like McDonald’s support clubs such as Coleraine Academy, as it means they can use the money saved by the kit and equipment to invest in training more coaches, improving facilities and reducing the costs passed onto players and their parents”

To find out more about how McDonald’s and The Irish FA’s support community football, please visit www.mcdonalds.co.uk/BetterPlay.