Bridge United have qualified for the FAI Youths quarter-finals following an impressive win over College Corinthians on Saturday.

Bridge Utd 3
College Corinthians 1
Venue: Sixmilebridge

A glistening season for the Mark Culbert managed Bridge Youths got even better on Saturday afternoon as they sealed their place in the last eight of the FAI Youths Cup. They will line out in the Munster Youths semi-final later this month.

Top Cork outfit, College Corinthians came to Clare full of confidence at the weekend, the Leesiders have also qualified for the last four of the Munster Youths Cup and are unbeaten in 37 games in their own County League.

Clare Youths captain Liam Buckley put Bridge ahead with a powerful header on fourteen minutes. They doubled their advantage nine minutes later when Thabiso Dube put the ball in the net. From here, the visitors began to get a foothold in the contest and were rewarded when they pulled back a goal.

However the Sixmilebridge side responded superbly. Leon Daly teed up Conor Maxwell who executed his shot rather impressively on twenty nine minutes giving the hosts a 3-1 advantage at the interval.

Corinthians piled on the pressure in the second half as they tried to make their way through. With three of the Clare Youths backline lining out in the Bridge’s defence, getting through was going to be no easy task and so it proved.

They were due to have a busy few weeks on the card as they travel to Cork to face St Mary’s FC in the FAI Youths Cup quarter-final on March 21st/22nd. The week after they are on the road again, this time to take on Limerick outfit, Ballingarry AFC in the Munster Youths Cup semi-final. However a blanket ban introduced by the FAI means the earliest these games will be played is April.

Bridge Utd: Will Fitzpatrick, Leon Kelly, Storm Devanney, Liam Buckley, Luke Shea, Dylan Downes, Scott Kirkland, Kyle Walker (Capt), Leon Daly, Thabiso Dube, Conor Maxwell.

Subs: Eli O’Sullivan for Dube, Adam O’Sullivan for Downes, Evan O’Callaghan for Maxwell, James Egan, Michael Carey, Conor Morey, Ian Collins