YOUNGSTAR’s Set The Standard

First up at this Glenafton Tourney was our under-8 kids, when a mix of five experienced First Touchers and three less experienced First Touch Kickers made the journey south to New Cumnock. In the first match the opposition was Prestayr, a game which was totally dominated by First Touch from start to finish. Young goalie Lewis Brodie never had a save to make and both coaches and players were stunned when in Prestayr’s only attack the boys found themselves 1-0 down. Despite numerous attempts and some fine saves by the young Prestayr goalie this was the full time score.
The second game saw the boys face a strong East Kilbride Blues team, the loss of two quick goals could easily have seen the boys on the receiving end of a heavy defeat. To their credit the boys rolled up the sleeves and got back in the game with a fine goal by Adam Houlihan. In the dying seconds young "Skipper"Ryan Ball fired a free kick which beat the keeper but rebounded from the post.
Next up was Troon Pumas and with victory a must the boys set about their business in the best possible way with goals from Conor McGhee and Ryan Ball. The football began to flow and it was no surprise when they added to their tally when Jack McEwan set up Conor to score and shortly before full time "Bally" added a fourth.
Qualification for the knock out stages meant one thing, beat the so far undefeated Lochar Thistle(Dumfries) or we are heading home early. After a slow start the boys found themselves going 1-0 down, will they get it back…..you bet, game on. The football was superb with Big Knoxy and Big Dave Burrows keeping it tight at the back the ball was passed all over the park and three goals from Ryan, Conor and Adam saw them through to the knockout stages.The winners of GroupC Mauchline Killie B.C. were to be our opposition in the quarter finals having topped their group winning all the games in the process. First Touch produced their best performance of the tourney playing by far their best football and totally outclassed the opposition. Goals from Conor McGhee(2) and Ryan Ball(2) saw them through by the easy margin of 4-0. Into the semi where they again faced EK Blues who had previously beaten us 2-1 in the sections. This was to be an eagerly contested match between without doubt the two best teams in the tourney. In a tight match it looked as if the first to score could possibly win and this was to be the case when a rasping drive beat young Lewis Brodie who had some fantastic saves throughout the tourney. The game ended in controversy when in the dying seconds Bally was clean through only to be brought down on the edge of the box…….the ref’s decision…..Full Time……even Coach John McNeil argued the case but to no avail. Derek and John were delighted with the contribution from all the boys in what was a fantastic day, great effort and great football.
The 1996 group took part in their final Glenafton Tournament at Loch Park, on 17th June. First Touch A were in a section of 5, however, a late and unexpected call off by Aston Villa, reduced the section to 4. (Martin O’Neill always found it tough in Ayrshire) The boys got off to a great start, beating Glenafton B in a comfortable 3-0 victory with two fabulous goals from Michael Grant and one from Michael Houlihan. It was during this game that First Touch played some sparkling football, with Graham Brown and Craig Knight linking up well. Cammy Paton had a couple of fine saves in this game. During the spell between the first and second games, Mick Harrington had time to run a half marathon, go to mass, visit Rabbie Burns’ cottage and still managed to get back to give the boys their warm up. Their second opponents were Troon Thistle A, previous winners of the tournament. First Touch went 1-0 down, following a strange refereeing decision. The ball seemed well out of play, but he let play continue and it resulted in a goal for Troon, who had been playing well. To their credit, First Touch battled back and another goal from Michael Grant gave them a deserved equaliser. Confident and assured defensive work from Nicky Jamieson & Jamie Mills kept Troon’s forwards quiet. Avoiding defeat in the final game against Claremont B, would see First Touch move into the quarter finals. An early goal from Graham Brown put First Touch in control, and some great work by Brendan Sharp had Claremont on the back foot. Brendan going close on more than one occasion. The game ended 1-1.
The quarter-final was played against Carrick Colts, but despite the best efforts of ‘Soup’ Campbell , the chances came and went. A special mention to Jack Harrington , who, despite picking up an injury, performed very well in his midfield role. Unfortunately, the scoreline of 1-3 was a rather flattering one, but the boys can be proud of their efforts and reflect on some great periods of football.