logo
William shows off football skills in partnership with Street Soccer Scotland

William shows off football skills in partnership with Street Soccer Scotland

Leader Live21-05-2025
William joined a practice session run by Street Soccer Scotland, being backed by his Royal Foundation, which will fund a range of initiatives at the charity's branch in Leith, near Edinburgh.
The financial support from the foundation's Community Impact Project will also help the charity create Leith United – a collaboration with Leith Community Centre and YMCA Edinburgh.
The prince met YMCA user Shaniah Gilgun, aged 10, and learnt about her efforts with other youngsters to improve housing conditions in the area, but the conversation turned to football when he spotted a poster of Aston Villa.
Villa fan William mentioned the club's captain, who also leads the Scottish national side, telling Shaniah: 'Maybe I should bring John McGinn… might have to wait till he retires – we'll put it in the pipeline.'
He added: 'He promised me he would come up and show me around.'
After asking a group of children about their football teams during his visit to the community centre, he said of son Prince Louis: 'My youngest supports five different teams now.'
Shaniah later mentioned William's praise for her housing campaign: 'He said it was a really good thing and that we should keep doing it and only good will come out of it.
'When he mentioned John McGinn, I said, 'That's a deal'.'
Street Soccer Scotland was founded by David Duke in Leith in 2009 before he opened centres across Scotland to deliver free football-themed training and personal development programmes to support people experiencing issues like poor mental health, addiction, homelessness and isolation.
The charity will use the Royal Foundation grant to renovate Leith Community Centre, enhance sports-based initiatives at the site, enable outreach work in the community and fund an impact manager over three years to co-ordinate grassroots leaders and local partnerships.
During the visit William saw a range of groups who use the centre, from flamenco and kung fu classes to a group of amateur paintings who impressed the prince.
Mr Duke, who is an official supporter of William's Homewards homeless initiative, said after the visit: 'So obviously to have the support of the Royal Foundation is fantastic.
'Their vision is to try and create community impact and they're looking at places and spaces where they can create that.'
He added: 'It's about the long-term support from the wider Royal Foundation team, they can help us create almost a blueprint for change and they've already started working with us on a kind of theory of change, in terms of how we can use this space and the partnerships to make a difference.'
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Billy Davies to take charge of first Scottish match in TWENTY FIVE years this afternoon
Billy Davies to take charge of first Scottish match in TWENTY FIVE years this afternoon

Scottish Sun

timea few seconds ago

  • Scottish Sun

Billy Davies to take charge of first Scottish match in TWENTY FIVE years this afternoon

It's his first match in charge since 2001 BACK AT IT Billy Davies to take charge of first Scottish match in TWENTY FIVE years this afternoon Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) BILLY DAVIES will take charge of his first Scottish match for 25 years this afternoon. Morton boss Dougie Imrie has been forced to miss the Cappielow side's home Championship opener against Dunfermline for family reasons. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 3 Dougie Imrie misses the clash for family reasons Credit: Kenny Ramsay 3 Dougie Imrie and Biilly Davies Credit: Kenny Ramsay 3 Billy Davies returns to football Credit: Kenny Ramsay And that means a sudden temporary elevation to the top job for veteran former Motherwell, Derby and Nottingham Forest gaffer Davies, who made a surprise return to the Scottish game when he joined as the club's new technical head coach last month. It's an unfortunate piece of early season turmoil for the Greenock side, who yesterday added veteran striker Eamonn Brophy to their squad on a two-year deal. More to follow. Keep up to date with ALL the latest news and transfers at the Scottish Sun football page

The ancient seaside town featuring in a new ITV drama – and you can stay for £26
The ancient seaside town featuring in a new ITV drama – and you can stay for £26

Scottish Sun

time2 hours ago

  • Scottish Sun

The ancient seaside town featuring in a new ITV drama – and you can stay for £26

THE new ITV drama Karen Pirie has viewers gripped, and they can't help but check out the backdrop of Scotland too. One of the filming locations included in the second series is Kinghorn in Fife, which has a beautiful coastline and a holiday park along the bay that offers stays from just £26. 5 ITV series Karen Pirie filmed in various places around Scotland Credit: Rex 5 One of those was Kinghorn in Fife Credit: Alamy Kinghorn is a coastal town and popular seaside resort in Fife. It's got rich history too dating back to the Mesolithic era, it's also known as "Kingdom of Fife" and was once the home of many Scottish monarchs. Nowadays it is well-known for its two sandy beaches, Kinghorn Harbour beach and Pettycur Bay beach, which are what is listed as the best thing to do on Tripadvisor. One visitor to Pettycur Bay wrote: "Just love this little gem! When the tide is out there's a ridiculously huge expansive beach that goes for miles. "It's never mobbed there I can't understand why because it's an awesome place. On a clear day, there are good views of the Forth bridges." Anyone who wants to head to Kinghorn on a break can stay at the Pettycur Bay Holiday Park. The park is found on a hill overlooking the Firth of Forth, so you will almost always have the best views around. As for facilities, the Pettycur Bay Holiday Park has an indoor swimming pool, amusement arcade, and children's play areas both indoors and outdoors. There's also a restaurant, a lounge bar and live entertainment like quizzes, magic shows and singers. As for where to stay, you can choose from five different types of caravans which vary in style, quality, and features. New Center Parcs to open in Scotland with 700 lodges 5 The holiday park looks over Pettycur Bay Credit: Alamy 5 Facilities include a swimming pool and gaming arcade Credit: Pettycur The caravan's range from two stars, like Raith, to Balbirnie which is the executive five stars caravan. Guests can also stay on the Pettycur Bay campsite with pitches from £26 per night. When one writer visited Pettycur Bay Holiday Park, he said that it felt like he was in a "different world." He continued to add that supplies could be picked up at the small shop in the Bay Hotel, less than a five-minute walk away. And with a swimming pool, bar and restaurant there was actually no need to venture outside the park. The holiday park is also one hour away from the popular cities of St Andrews and Edinburgh. Currently, Kinghorn in Fife is starring in the ITV detective drama, Karen Pirie. Other filming locations include Loch Locmond, Glasgow, Glenrothes, and the historic Caiplie Caves. Plus, the Center Parcs boss reveals what to expect from brand new holiday park in Scotland – and future village locations. And the popular seaside town dubbed a 'must-visit' set for HUGE £16million retail and restaurant development.

Derek McInnes wary of Hearts 'belt in the mouth' as he reveals what success will really come down to
Derek McInnes wary of Hearts 'belt in the mouth' as he reveals what success will really come down to

Daily Record

time2 hours ago

  • Daily Record

Derek McInnes wary of Hearts 'belt in the mouth' as he reveals what success will really come down to

McInnes takes on former club Aberdeen in Premiership opener on Monday and is likely to battling them for third spot Derek McInnes is desperate to show the excitement building at Hearts is justified as they prepare for Monday's Premiership opener against Aberdeen. ‌ The free-scoring Jambos have caught the eye after cruising through their Premier Sports Cup group before swatting aside big spending Premier League new boys Sunderland in a 3-0 friendly win last weekend. ‌ New boss McInnes has used Tony Bloom's analytics software to add seven fresh faces with Pierre Landry Kabore and Tomas Magnusson set to follow. ‌ Brighton owner Bloom, who has invested nearly £10million, says he wants to 'disrupt' Scottish football. And although that is a long-term plan – McInnes wants to put the building blocks in place, starting against Jimmy Thelin's Dons. He said: 'The game itself is everything you want from the first of the season – a home match, live on Sky, sell-out, up against a good team with good players. ‌ 'There'll be a lot of good players on the pitch on Monday night. 'We just want to make sure we're as prepared as we can, which I think we are. Come Monday we've just got to be ready to go. 'After the close season that we've had, we look ready, we look fit, we look competitive, we look motivated. We look as if we've got good options. ‌ 'Although pre-season is never truly an indication, we've had plenty of goals, plenty of clean-sheets and a nice feelgood factor. 'It's important we try and keep this feeling as long as we can. We're well aware there'll be a belt on the mouth around the corner. 'But we want to keep that to a minimum this season if we can. And hopefully we can just keep this feeling going. ‌ 'And when the first game proper starts, just try and come out the other end of it with three points.' McInnes has deployed a high-press, front-foot approach that bore fruit in the league cup as they scored 16 in four games. ‌ New recruits Claudio Braga, Alexandros Kyziridis and Oisin McEntee are among those who have caught the eye. But McInnes insists quality players are the difference regardless of what tactics are used. He said: 'Systems and tactics can sometimes be a bit overplayed. 'It's all about who makes the good signings and I think that's key. ‌ 'A lot of people are investing money but if we're doing the job as well as we can, with our budget, our resources and facilities, we should be expecting a lot more from ourselves than last year, no doubt about it.' McInnes is bracing himself for a tough test against Dons, who stunned Celtic in May's Scottish Cup Final. He added: 'They have a lot of good players. 'It was an unusual season from their point of view, up and down, but to finish the season with a cup win? Good on them for that. 'They'll be buoyant after that and a lot will be expected of them again this season. 'Other clubs, ourselves included, have invested and have their own way of trying to recruit players – but you're always mindful that others are doing their work well.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store