News August 08
Good Relations Delivered to Armagh and Strabane
Football For All took to the road this week to deliver a series of workshops to young people from Armagh and Strabane District councils.
Tuesday saw the launch of the first ever Armagh Fun World Cup which was a three day programme of football matches and Good Relations training to help young people embrace diversity and recognise the positive impact this can have on their lives.
This event was organised by Armagh Councils Good Relations Officer Martin Connell and was endorsed by many football clubs including Manchester United, Liverpool and Aston Villa. More than 100 young people aged 10 to 16 took part.
“This event was created to inspire good relations in the Armagh district and I was delighted to have the Irish Football Association and Sport Against Racism Ireland coming here to promote this work to all the young participants” Martin explained.
Strabane Council Good Relations Department also arranged a football training and Good Relations themed series of workshops on Thursday for more than 40 young people during the annual summer scheme at Melvin Park. Irish Football Association Community Relations Officer Colleen Macauley added, “The young people of Strabane were brilliant fun and their knowledge of how to embrace diversity was really refreshing. I really hope we can have another opportunity to schedule more workshops for other young people from the area”.
IFA Head of Community Relations, Michael Boyd praised both councils for their vision and hard work in arranging these activities. “The Armagh Fun World Cup was a superb example of using sport to promote Good Relations and it was obvious that a huge amount of hard work went into this event. I have to commend both Armagh and Strabane District Councils for coordinating and arranging these activities as I am sure the positive message will be used by all the young people and help make the sport of football for welcoming, safe and inclusive”.
For further information regarding this, please contact cmacauley@irishfa.com
