PAST PLAYERS OF UMBRO GALWAY CUP MAKING THEIR MARK

The Umbro Galway Cup, which takes place from the 4th to the 7th August, is now in its sixth successive year. This year sees the return of defending U15 Elite Champions Leicester City along with 2007 winners Ipswich Town, while Sweden, Norway, Wales, and Ireland will also be represented at this age group. There are categories at the Under 17, Under 15, and Under 13 level for boys, with an Under 17 competition for girls. Setanta Sports will again be filming the event, and highlights of the Tournament will be shown in late August and early September.

“Year after year scouts from all the top academies in the UK come to the Galway Cup to observe the matches and to identify players that have the potential to move on and become professional footballers. In just a few years many have broken into the first team of high-profile clubs, with many more not far behind. We keep in close contact with local club managers, academy scouts, and academy directors to make sure that we can monitor the progress of players who have played in the Galway Cup”, said Denis Burke, Tournament Director.

A recent success story is Greg Cunningham from Galway who has made first team appearances for both Manchester City and the Republic of Ireland. Cunningham competed in the 2006 Umbro Galway Cup playing for Mervue Utd in the U15 cup event, and capped a fine week with the Player of the Tournament accolade.  Greg also featured on the RTE Nationwide programme about the Umbro Galway Cup 2006.

Another success story is Joe Coll from Donegal who earned a contract with Manchester Utd. Coll was the goalkeeper of the Donegal Schoolboys squad that competed in the 2006 and 2008 editions of the Umbro Galway Cup, and played Newcastle Utd, Ipswich Town, and the FAI Emerging Talent.

Joe Shaughnessy, who captained host club Salthill Devon in two SFAI Cup finals, signed for Aberdeen in 2008 having competed in the 2006 and 2007 editions of the Galway Cup. Joe has since broken into the first team squad at Aberdeen, making the bench on a number of occasions, and has been a regular for the U17 Republic of Ireland team. Stevie Folan, also a former Salthill Devon player, has been signed by Newcastle Utd, having played for the FAI Emerging Talent squad in the 2008 Umbro Galway Cup.

Many players that have been with The FAI Emerging Talent squad in various editions of the Galway Cup have gone on to be signed by academies in the UK. From the 2008 side alone, Paul Lawless (Derby County), Anthony Bolger (Aberdeen), Gerard Keegan (Southamptom), John Egan (Sunderland), Darragh Kenna (Southampton), Daniel Purdy (West Ham), and David Murphy (Reading) have all earned themselves contracts with strong UK academies.

Connor Wickham played for Ipswich Town in the 2006 Umbro Galway Cup, and has since broken into the first team, managed by Roy Keane. Wickham was the youngest player to make a senior appearance for the Tractor Boys, and scored four goals in the 09/10 season. He is said to be the target of a number of Premier League clubs, and reportedly has had a £10 million transfer fee slapped onto his head by Keane in an effort to keep the highly-rated youngster at Portman Road.

MARCO TARDELLI LAUNCHES THE 2010 UMBRO GALWAY CUP

Marco Tardelli, Assistant Manager for the Republic of Ireland, launched the 6th annual international Umbro Galway Cup at Salthill Devon Football Club in Drom Soccer Park in Galway. There will be over 50 teams in six major categories competing in this prestigious international competition, which takes place this year from 4th to 7th August.

"The Galway Cup is now in its sixth successive year and is considered one of the leading international underage soccer tournaments. It attracts teams from the UK, the US, and Europe as well as a strong representation of Irish clubs. The mix of international class teams helps players assess their performance, both individually and as part of a team,” said Marco Tardelli, FAI.

This year’s U15 Elite group sees the return of Leicester City who successfully defended their 2009 title, defeating Fulham in the final, along with 2007 winners Ipswich Town, 2006 winners Aberdeen, and 2005 winners FAI Emerging Talent. Six nations are represented in the U15 Elite group including Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales, Sweden, and Norway. This is the first time that a Swedish or Welsh side have competed in the Elite competition.

In the U17 category, AIK Stockholm, one of Sweden’s top academies and clubs, will compete for the first time, as will Welsh side Bangor City. There is also a host of strong Irish teams and representative sides in this year’s U17 competition, including Wexford District League, Kilkenny District League, and Salthill Devon.

“Marco Tardelli is a World Cup winner, Serie A Champion, a UEFA Cup winner, and European Cup winner. Taking time out to launch the Galway Cup today is a great inspiration for local players and everyone involved in this year’s tournament,” says Denis Burke, Tournament Director

The Umbro Galway Cup (www.galwaycup.com) is now a major contributor to the promotion of sports in Ireland, and the generator of substantial tourism revenues for the City of Galway. To receive more information on the 2010 Galway Cup, please visit www.galwaycup.com or contact Denis Burke, Tournament Director, on info@galwaycup.com or +353 (0)87 7442877.

U15 ELITE BOYS LINE-UP

The U15 Elite Boys line-up is now finalised:
> Leicester City [Defending Champions]
> FAI Emerging Talent
> Ipswich Town
> Cherry Orchard
> Aberdeen
> Stabaek
> IF Brommapojkarna Boys
> Bangor City

Six nations are represented: Ireland, England, Wales, Scotland, Norway, and Sweden. Leicester City return to defend their title, having won it in 2008 and successfully defended it in 2009. The FAI Emerging Talent, Ipswich Town, and Aberdeen have all won the Elite title before and will be hoping for similar success this year. Bangor City, from Wales, Stabaek, from Norway, and BP, from Sweden, will all compete for the first time in the event, while Cherry Orchard return for the second year, having drawn three of their four group games in the 2009 event.

U17 BOYS EVENT NEARLY FULL

The Under 17 Boys section looks set to be full in the coming days, with a number of other teams now confirmed. Kilkenny District League and Wexford Development will both participate in this year's event for the first time. Ballincollig currently lie fifth in the Premier Division of the Cork Schoolboys League. We welcome both representative sides to the event. Both will be all too aware that they will have to perform at their very best to leave with silverware at this year's event, with the likes of Bangor City, Templeogue Utd, and Salthill Devon all eager to become the 2010 U17 Champions.

With a number of teams also expressing an interest, we would encourage all team leaders who may be interested in bringing a team to the Galway Cup to contact Tournament Director Denis Burke as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

FORMER GALWAY CUP PLAYER SIGNS FOR MANCHESTER UTD

We are delighted to learn that a former Umbro Galway Cup player has signed for Manchester Utd! Goalkeeper Joe Coll played for Donegal Schoolboys in 2006 and again in 2008. The Donegal squad, pictured left, competed in the U15 Eliite Competition in 2008, and were in the same group as Newcastle Utd, Leeds Utd, Ipswich Town, and the FAI Emerging Talent squad.

We would like to congratulate Joe and his family, as well as his local club Glenea United, and wish him all the best in what promises to be a long and prosperous professional career.

WELSH OUTFIT BANGOR CITY CONFIRMED FOR U15 ELITE COMPETITION

The seventh team that will compete in the U15 Elite Boys Competition has been confirmed. Bangor City from Wales will compete in this year's event for the first time. This means that, at present, five nations will be represented in this age group [Republic of Ireland, England, Sweden, Scotland, and Wales]. Bangor will face some stiff competition from the likes of Aberdeen, Ipswich Town, FAI Emerging Talent, and defending Champions Leicester City, and will have their work cut out for them to bring the Elite Cup home to the North Welsh coast.

We welcome Bangor City and wish them well for what promises to be the most competitive U15 Elite Competition to date.

IPSWICH TOWN AND IF BROMMAPOJKARNA BOYS [BP] CONFIRMED FOR U15 ELITE COMPETITION

We are pleased to announce that two more teams have been confirmed for the Boys U15 Elite Competition. 2007 winners Ipswich Town will be making the journey to the West of Ireland for the fifth successive year, while we welcome BP from Sweden for their first visit. Thus far, there are six teams confirmed for this age group, with Ipswich and BP joining the FAI Emerging Talent, Cherry Orchard, Aberdeen and defending champions Leicester City.

On another note, we have many teams confirmed across the U17 Boys, U15 Elite, U15 Club Boys, U13 Elite, and U13 Club Boys, as well as numerous enquiries. We would encourage all team leaders that are considering bringing their team to the event to contact the Tournament staff sooner rather than later to avoid disappointment.

ANNOUNCEMENT: GIRLS EVENT CHANGE

We would like to draw your attention to a change in the format for the 2010 Umbro Galway Cup. The U14 Girls competition has been replaced by an U17 event. After last year's U17 Competition, in which Northern Ireland defeated Cork Schoolgirls in a hugely entertaining final, we hope for a great line-up again this year.

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