Clyde at the Milk Cup

A team from the club’s youth development section is currently in Northern Ireland, competing in the Milk Cup.

The Northern Ireland Milk Cup was established in 1983 and quickly progressed to become one of the most prestigious youth football tournaments in Europe. The competition is based at Coleraine, County Londonderry and several surrounding towns – Ballymoney, Limavady, Portstewart, Portrush, Castlerock, Ballymena and Broughshane.

The event, now in its 26th year, has attracted teams from 56 countries around the world including Europe, the USA, Africa, the Far East, South America, the Middle East, Australia, Russia, New Zealand and Canada.

Some of the biggest teams in the world have entered the competition down the years including Premiership giants Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea, Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United as well as top European teams such as Feyenoord, FC Porto, Barcelona, Benfica, Sevilla, Bayern Munich and Dynamo Kiev.

This year there are 54 teams competing across three age sections – U15, U17 and U19 – including Borussia Dortmund, Sevilla and Manchester United with national sides featuring Belgium, USA and Chile.

Old Trafford legend and UNICEF supporter Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was the star attraction at the weekend’s opening parade.

The Bully Wee were given a last-minute invite to compete in the Junior section and replace Mexican side Gaudalajara. County Armagh and Everton will be the opponents Gary Bollan’s team initially has to face, but the section also includes clubs such as Rosenborg, Plymouth Argyle, Necaxa, Maccabi Tel Aviv and Chelsea.

Although the team that travelled with Gary is still in its infancy and therefore not expected to progress, it’s sure to be a wonderful experience for all the boys.

For more information, go to the official Milk Cup website or the dedicated BBC website.