Schools On Dream Run To The Ricoh Arena

The Premiership's top teams are readying themselves to contest professional football's showpiece cup finals later in May as both the FA Cup and the UEFA Champions League build to a thrilling climax.

And hot on their heels will be the next generation of England's most talented footballers who are currently one match away from winning through to the National Finals of Europe's largest 11-a-side schools' football tournament - the Minute Maid Schools' Cup.

Following successful County Cup and Regional Cup campaigns, the top school teams in the country at under-13 age level have won through to the National Semi-Finals of the Minute Maid Schools' Cup. Both National Semi-Finals are to be staged on May 9 and will give the teams involved the dream opportunity to play at top Premiership stadia.

The Northern National Semi-Final will see the Northern Schools' champions face the Midlands Schools' champions at The Riverside Stadium - the home of Middlesbrough FC:
Girls: Ormskirk School vs. William Farr C of E Comprehensive School (Lincoln)
Boys: Walbottle Campus (Newcastle) vs. Kenilworth School and Sports College

In the Southern National Semi-Final, the top teams in the South West and South East will meet at Reading FC's Madejski Stadium:
Girls: Dorcan Technology College (Swindon) vs. Tideway School (Newhaven)
Boys: Emmanuel Middle School (Verwood) vs. Glyn Technology School (Ewell)

Victory in their respective National Semi-Finals will see the schools through to the showpiece finale of the grass roots football season - The Minute Maid Schools' Cup National Finals - to be played at The Ricoh Arena, the multi-purpose stadium home to Coventry City FC, on May 22.

England winger Stewart Downing has backed this season's tournament and praised the opportunities afforded to the youngsters taking part: "Getting the chance to play in professional football stadiums in the final stages of the Minute Maid Schools' Cup will be brilliant for the schools involved - you hope you'll have that sort of opportunity when you are starting out in football. It will make the players want more chances to play at top football venues - it will give them the drive to develop their games and you never know, maybe provide the inspiration to make it to the top.

"As the biggest 11-a-side schools' football tournament in Europe, the climax of the Minute Maid Schools' Cup will definitely be one to watch!"

This season over half the secondary schools in England have taken part in the Minute Maid Schools' Cup. Run in partnership with the English Schools' Football Association for the fifth consecutive season, the tournament has seen more than 40,000 young players from over 2,600 school teams participate in grass roots football.

'Minute Maid' is a registered trade mark of The Coca-Cola Company

Notes to Editors:

• Full details of the draw and the schools' cup runs in the Minute Maid Schools' Cup can be viewed on the English Schools' FA web site: www.esfa.co.uk then follow links for competitions