Up for the Foyle Cup

The victories came as well in excess of 3,000 young players aged from 9 up to 19 years-old embarked on their mission to become a Foyle Cup winner, in and around the City of Culture 2013 elect.

And what clearer demonstration of this soccer mad city's culture is there than this feast of football.

The competition aside, teams from all over the city and district compete in the Derry & District Youth Football Association (D&DYFA) leagues day in daily, from Spring to Summer. These cater for the same age groups as the Foyle Cup, and more.

The most prestigious youth competition attracts more and more quality teams and visitors from all over the world. It is one of the few remnants of Impact '92 when an attempt was made to raise the profile of the city in cultural, sporting and tourist circles.

The D&D has expanded and transformed the competition to include the local communities of Creggan, Tullyally, the Brandywell, Newbuildings, Top of the Hill, Eglinton, Greysteel, Dungiven, Leafair, Burndennet, Ardmore, Strabane and Letterkenny.

The D&D YFA has seen enormous benefits from the Foyle Cup.

Taking in any of the games played on a summer's evening at Oakland Park or Prehen, one could not fail to be impressed at the expansive, passing football played by local sides.

No longer a game of kick and rush, chasing the ball in packs, all the clubs have developed tremendously in recent years, and that is in no small way down to the impact of the Foyle Cup.

The clubs benefit from having qualified coaches working with the players. Foyle Harps' Under 14s recently won this year's Northern Ireland Boys League which included many Irish League sides like Ards, Dungannon, Linfield, Cliftonville and Glenavon.

The D&D's own Youth Academy works with the cream of each age group, furthering developing the youngsters' skills.

The football world is more than aware of the success story that is the D&D YFA. Many of the players are highly sought after once they graduate to playing football later, whether in the local leagues or across the channel.

Across channel many local young ex-D&D YFA players like Paddy McCourt, Shane Duffy, Shane Ferguson, Eunan O'Kane, Dean Jarvis and Cormac Burke are preparing for the adventure and opportunity a new season presents.

Games in the Foyle Cup are being played throughout each day and early evening all around the area. The Under 19 Final is at Ardmore on Friday at 7pm and the Under 16, 12 and 14 Finals at the Brandywell on Saturday afternoon at 12noon, 1.15pm and 2.30pm.

For full details, results and fixtures throughout the week visit the official website at www.foylecup.com.