Secretary Of State For Education And Skills Backs Best Young Footballers In England

The Rt Hon Alan Johnson MP, Secretary of State for Education and Skills, has taken time out of his busy schedule to help perform the draw for the Regional Rounds of the Minute Maid Schools' Cup - the largest 11-a-side schools' football tournament in Europe for boys and girls - at the recent Sports Colleges Conference held at the Telford International Centre.

Mr Johnson MP assisted in the draw as the remaining top 128 teams in the competition were split into four separate regional knockout cups in the North, Midlands, South East and South West of England.

The Secretary of State offered his support for the Minute Maid Schools' Cup and the schools involved in the competition, commenting: "As a football fan, I was especially pleased to make the draw for this impressive competition. The English Schools Football Association is doing a sterling job staging a tournament that involves 40,000 young people, making it the biggest schools' football tournament in Europe.

"Football remains the most popular sport in our schools and is the fastest growing girls' sport. Its power to inspire children can motivate them both on and off the sports pitch. Like all sports it has the potential to improve a child's body and mind and raise the quality of their education. I wish all the competitors the best of luck."

The majority of the teams that have qualified for the Minute Maid Regional Schools' Cups are already winners as proud holders of their respective Minute Maid County Cups.

Additionally a small number of runners-up teams from County Cup competitions have been given a second chance for glory in the Minute Maid Schools' Cup with wild card entries into the Regional Cups. These entries have been allocated according to proportional representation of Counties with the most participants in the competition last season.

Four victories in the Regional Cups will see the schools become Regional Champions and qualify for the National Semis and possibly the Finals.

With the showpiece National Finals to be hosted on May 22nd - the day before the UEFA Champions League Final - at The Ricoh Arena, the multi-purpose stadium home to Coventry City FC, the challenge has been laid down to all the schools to keep playing their best football.

Over half the secondary schools in England have taken part in the Minute Maid Schools' Cup this season. Run in partnership with the English Schools' Football Association for the fifth consecutive season, the tournament has seen over 40,000 young players from more than 2,600 schools participating in grass roots football at under-13 level.

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

Notes to Editors:

• The Draw for the ESFA U13 Minute Maid Schools Cup was fronted by the Secretary of State for Education, Alan Johnson MP, at the Sports Colleges Conference held at the Telford International Centre on Thursday 1 February 2007. The Secretary of State was assisted at this event by:
  
  • Richard Caborn MP, Minister for Sport
  • Don Givens, ex-QPR footballer and ROI u21 Manager
  • Kenny Swain, England U16 Manager
  • John Read, ESFA Chief Executive
  • Mike Spinks, ESFA National Competitions Manager
  • Ian Broadbridge, DfES
  • Debbie Ashford, DfES
• The Department for Education and Skills is working with schools and partners to boost the importance of sport in schools and increase children's participation. More information on www.teachernet.gov.uk
• Full details of the draw for the Minute Maid Schools' Cup can be viewed on the English Schools' FA web site: www.esfa.co.uk
• The online home of The Minute Maid Schools' Cup can be found at www.minutemaidschoolscup.co.uk