Southside Youths excel at Blackpool Cup

Over the two days of the Tournament in glorious sunshine the Ballymena South boys exceeded all expectations against teams from Scotland, England and Northern Ireland.

During the first day the boys stormed into action right from kick off and very quickly recorded three straight wins leaving the last Saturday fixture against Maidstone from Kent.

With the final whistle only seconds away Maidstone’s robust winger bundled Southside’s Dylan Hamill over on the edge of the penalty area and went onto score. Appeals for a Southside free kick fell on deaf ears as the referee allowed the goal to stand.

The first day ended with Southside accumulating nine points from their three victories and going into Sunday day two in second place in the league.

The final of this competition would be first against second placed teams in the league following another day of fixtures so it was vital for Southside to again start well and maintain their position if not improve it.

Every player in the squad was contributing massively as the management team looked to rest injured and tired players at every opportunity. Southside recorded wins in the first two games and secure a place in the final.

As the remaining fixtures were played during the morning it was to be Maidstone who would stand between Southside and achieving the unthinkable.

The English FA competition age group ruling meant that Maidstone would fall into an under 16 age group under IFA ruling but an exhausted and injury riddled Southside squad took to the pitch.

Taking the lead on 6 minutes Maidstone went for a more convincing score line as the game progressed but the battling qualities of the Southside boys prevented this and the game ended 1-0.

For Southside to compete in a tournament across the Irish Sea for the first time and be narrowly beaten 1-0 in the final was a remarkable achievement.

The 15 player squad were a credit to themselves and the club. The support given to the team from the 25 strong coaches and parents was immense.

The only mishap of the weekend was the injury to Southside goalkeeping coach Macauley Cairns. In a simple warm up exercise Macauley landed awkwardly on his ankle breaking two bones. Everyone associated with the club wish the big man a speedy recovery.