A&E doctor put referee Dermot at centre of the action
Football referee Dermot Liddy is celebrating his silver anniversary at the Foyle Cup thanks to a doctor in an accident and emergency department.
The youth soccer tournament has been running in Derry city since 1992, with Dermot joining the team in 2001. This year, nearly 1,000 teams have descended on the city to compete in 3,600 matches over the week-long tournament.
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Belfast Telegraph
a day ago
- Belfast Telegraph
A&E doctor put referee Dermot at centre of the action
Civil servant marking 25 years at Foyle Cup after injury cut keeper career short Football referee Dermot Liddy is celebrating his silver anniversary at the Foyle Cup thanks to a doctor in an accident and emergency department. The youth soccer tournament has been running in Derry city since 1992, with Dermot joining the team in 2001. This year, nearly 1,000 teams have descended on the city to compete in 3,600 matches over the week-long tournament.
Belfast Telegraph
2 days ago
- Belfast Telegraph
MLA condemns ‘organised attack by thugs' before Derry football match
SDLP's Mark H Durkan, who was at the match, said some young people had been injured Families were left terrified after trouble broke out in Londonderry before a football match last night, an MLA has said. Violent clashes unfolded before the Derry City v Bohemians League of Ireland game at the Ryan McBride Stadium. Trouble broke out in the Bogside area of Derry before kick-off. SDLP MLA Mark H Durkan, who was at the match, said some young people had been injured. He branded it an organised attack by thugs and warned someone could be killed if the trouble is not stamped out. Videos circulating online show people, some of them with their faces masked, clashing outside the stadium. Some appear to be armed with missiles and sticks. Mr Durkan condemned the trouble. He said: 'It is disgusting and disgraceful that so many football fans and families left the match in fear tonight due to violent clashes that occurred outside in what had all the hallmarks of an organised attack. 'Thugs came to Derry masked and armed with an array of weapons. 'Local young people were injured - I hope they recover swiftly. This madness must stop before someone is killed. 'It is awful that after what has been such a tremendously positive week for the city through the Foyle Cup, this is what will hit the headlines tomorrow. 'I must commend the efforts of the stewards in the Brandywell who did their very best in extremely difficult circumstances.' The match was also briefly suspended after a flare was thrown from outside the ground onto the pitch. Sinn Fein MLA Padraig Delargy said 'so-called supporters from Dublin' attacked local people. 'The sight of masked youths armed with an array of weapons, and fighting in the streets before turning on the PSNI was terrifying for local residents, including children, who witnessed this appalling violence,' he said. 'In what seems to have been be a pre-arranged attack connected to a football match at the Brandywell, the violence erupted when so-called football supporters from Dublin attacked local youths as well as cars and property belonging to residents. "That is disgraceful and the violence that took place on our streets needs to be condemned. "It threatened the safety and well-being of local residents and stands in stark contrast to the fantastic work that is going on in the area through the Féile and the redevelopment of Meenan Square.' The PSNI, Derry City and Bohemians have been contacted for comment.
Belfast Telegraph
6 days ago
- Belfast Telegraph
‘Where was the forward planning?': Traffic ‘chaos' raises questions over pause in Derry city roadworks for The Open and not Foyle Cup
The traffic 'chaos' on Monday has led to further questions over a moratorium on roadworks, with one local politician calling for an immediate halt to the works. Images shared online show traffic bumper to bumper on the Foyle Bridge, with one car appearing to get stuck in the central reservation as it attempted to perform a U-turn. Members of the public have reported seeing numerous drivers doing the same manoeuvre to avoid being stuck in traffic for an hour or more. The Foyle Cup, which began in 1992, has grown exponentially to become one of the major annual events in the city, with almost 1,000 teams and some 20,000 players competing. With matches taking place across the length and breadth of the city — accommodating the teams, coaches, families and supporters attending — there is a build-up of traffic in the area. The competition, now in its 33rd year, has previously featured the likes of James McLean, Shay Given, Robbie Keane and John O'Shea as youth players. Teams are welcomed from the Republic, Great Britain, Europe and North America. This year, South African side Sports Academy George are first-time competitors at the tournament. However, it emerged that while roadworks were paused for The Open, which recently took place on the North Coast, no such measures were put in place ahead of the Foyle Cup. Works were taking place in a number of major inner city roads on the first day of the football tournament, including on one of the busiest roads in the city, from Madam's Bank to the Foyle Bridge and Culmore. Further works are scheduled to take place on Queen's Quay, which could compound problems. Tournament organisers themselves also hit out at the situation on social media, saying the traffic in the city was 'chaotic'. 'Roadworks stopped last week in the Derry City Council area because there was a golf tournament happening for four days last week 40 miles away,' they wrote. 'We need MLAs to sort out traffic flow in Derry and in Balkykelly now.' Eamon O'Donnell of North West Taxi Proprietors told BBC Radio Foyle 'it was chaos' for taxi drivers in the city, with the likes of Strathfoyle cut off entirely, as drivers can not afford to be stuck for more than an hour travelling across either the Foyle or Craigavon Bridges. He added: 'Here was an opportunity to showcase the city and to support traffic management. It just created chaos. For the taxi industry, it had a massive impact. 'Basically, we were struggling to cover bookings due to the delays. People were missing hospital appointments, doctor's appointments, people were late for work. 'People started double-booking taxis, thinking the taxis weren't coming, tying up all their taxis. He added: 'There should have been moratorium on roadworks across the city, the same as we have for the Clipper and other things. 'It should have been [the whole] the place, the Queen's Quay — all of that there needs to be put off this week to free the city up.' Asked why roadworks would be paused for The Open and not a local event, he said the organisers of The Open must have been proactive in making that request, prompting him to question why Foyle politicians and other stakeholders in the city did not do the same. SDLP MLA Mark H Durkan has urged the Infrastructure Minister to urgently suspend all planned roadworks in Derry for the remainder of the week. 'It is hard to understand, never mind explain, how there was a moratorium on roadworks for The Open last week, despite the event taking place in Portrush, some 40 miles away. Yet this week, during one of Derry's biggest annual events, traffic is crawling across the city, causing widespread disruption,' he said. 'This gridlock is not just impacting players and families trying to make matches on time, but it's affecting all road users. 'The Foyle Cup is a well-established, annual tournament that brings thousands of visitors into the city. Where was the forward planning to accommodate that? It's simply not good enough.' NI Water said it is laying new wastewater infrastructure on Madam's Bank Road to support new development in the city, with sewer improvements also planned to get underway this week on Queens Quay. The projects were scheduled to take place during the summer months to minimise disruption to school traffic. 'Following the cessation of works last week on Madam's Bank Road to accommodate The Open golf tournament, and the postponement of work on Queens Quay this week to facilitate the Foyle Cup parade, we have taken on board the latest concerns regarding recent traffic disruption and have been liaising with our contractors to determine what measures can be put in place at this stage to alleviate the congestion,' a spokesperson said. 'NI Water can confirm that pipelaying has been stopped on Madam's Bank Road for the remainder of this week. As of early Tuesday, July 22, morning, traffic management on Madam's Bank Road will be reduced to one lane around where the road has already been excavated for the new pipe. Watch as Donegal couple rescued from flash flooding at caves in Fermanagh 'This will leave two lanes on Madam's Bank Road, on the approach to Culmore Road roundabout, open to traffic. 'Traffic management will also be removed from Culmore Road and Foyle Bridge for the remainder of this week in a bid to alleviate traffic congestion in the area. Pipelaying work will recommence on Monday, July 28, with the necessary traffic management reinstated.
