NO-ONE knows the origins of its name, but ‘The Wee Ligger’ has quite the story to tell.
Pinned right on the Donegal-Derry border at Altaghaderry, The Wee Ligger is better known as the home of Killea FC.
Tomorrow, a new chapter will be inserted as Killea FC plays its first ever games under the auspices of the Donegal Schoolboys League.
This year, for the first time, Killea FC will compete in the East Donegal Schoolboys League.
Killea’s Under-14s (pictured above) travel to St Patrick’s Park to face Drumkeen United at 12noon while the Under-12s (pictured below) welcome Lifford Celtic to The Wee Ligger at 2pm.
Seamus Canning and Phil Dillyston take charge of the Under-14s with Joe Cannon and John McFadden looking after the Under-12s.
“Our underage academy has been one of the great successes of our club in recent years,” says the Killea FC Chairman, Ritchie Kelly.
“The exciting challenge now is to see how our small, rural, border parish of Killea-Newtowncunningham fares against the rest of Donegal.
“The parents have given the club great support over the years and we hope they and the local public generally will come out for an hour on Saturday and watch our youngsters play.”
Canning has been to the fore in the development of the academy at the border club, which has gone through some lean times of late.
Having withdrawn from the Ulster Senior League and returned to competing in the Inishowen League, the club pulled its adult team out of the Inishowen League just before the start of the current season.
“This move with the youngsters and the underage teams is about building for the future,” Canning says.
“We hope that it’ll give us a better footing to establish ourselves again. We’ve had a series of weekly meetings and we’ve put in a lot of work into getting clearance for the players and getting ourselves organised to play in the East Donegal League.”
Until now, Killea’s teams played in the Inishowen Youth Leagues and more recently in the D&D.
“The organisation of the football in Donegal is better, we feel,” Canning says. “The wee boys are really looking forward to it. We all are, in fairness. We have an under-10s team starting in the East Donegal League soon too.
“It’s a big move for the club, but we think it’ll pay off.”
Killea FC was formed in 1962 and has been an affiliate of many Leagues in a sometimes nomadic existence.
They’ve participated in the Inishowen League, the Donegal League, the Ulster Senior League and the D&D, having started off in the famed summer cups.
In youth soccer, Killea FC – the home club of Finn Harps captain Kevin McHugh – has fielded previously in the Inishowen Youth League, the Donegal Youth League and the D&D Youth Association.
“We’re set to make a piece of history on Saturday when we have our first outings in the Donegal Schoolboys League,” says Kelly.
“Huge work has been done by Seamus Canning and all the under age coaches in preparing our teams.
“The cost generally of this new venture is quite extensive. We’re going to take the players by coach to all away matches for example – and to that end we’re holding a sponsored walk on Sunday November 8 followed by our presentations as well.
“We’re hoping for a good response.”
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