Linfield Academy Teams get their first Experience of New Midgley Park
On Wednesday evening last week Linfield FC Academy held a special night at New Midgley Park to give some of our younger Academy teams their first-ever opportunity and experience playing at New Midgley Park.
On a night when the inclement weather would have deterred many a person from venturing outside, our Linfield 2011s, 2012s, and 2013s Academy teams hosted Dungoyne FC, Ballymena United and Magherafelt Sky Blues to New Midgley Park to play in friendly exhibition games.
The series of games were fantastic to watch as the young aspiring stars of the future gave it everything in the horrendous weather conditions.
The weather, however, did not deter the participants, and all involved contributed to very competitive and enjoyable games, which was an excellent experience for the young players.
The large gathering of parents, family and friends of the players all thoroughly enjoyed the games and were very thankful to the wife and daughter of our 2007 coach Darren Devlin for keeping everyone warm with the tea and coffee.
In attendance on the night were Linfield FC Director Drew McCoubrey, Linfield Vice President Ronnie Morrison and Academy Director Glenn Ferguson.
Glenn said of the evening, "A fantastic evening was had by all and a great experience for these young boys to play at New Midgley Park, and I really want to thank all of the opposing teams for travelling tonight on such a wet evening and hope that they enjoyed the games. I would also like to thank the team of staff and coaches who made this night possible. These guys never cease to amaze me as ambassadors and workers for this great club."
We also had a special appearance of the Gibson and Irish Cup during the evening, which provided great photo opportunities for the players and guests.
Linfield Director Drew McCoubrey commented, "This was a fantastic experience for the young players of all the teams involved and their families. To be honest, I did fear the worst when the poor weather set in an hour before kick-off.
But my fears were misplaced with the numbers that turned up.
This was further highlighted when I learnt afterwards that our young goalkeeper of the Linfield 2012 squad travelled up from Dublin for his game to then make the return journey that evening – that is what I would call dedication indeed.
I'd also like to thank our Academy Director Glenn Ferguson and the team of coaches and background staff for making this night happen, as the amount of work put in to make the night happen was highly impressive.
I'd also like to extend the thanks of Linfield Football Club to the teams from Dungoyne FC, Ballymena United and Magherafelt Sky Blues for their attendance. Without them, this event would not have happened, and we look forward to hosting them again at some point in the future."
Jonathan Lamont
Linfield Director
