Farleigh Football News

What a superb day of football Farleigh enjoyed last week at the Rory McDonagh Cup, a sporting event in the annual Farleigh calendar that means so much to many and is keenly anticipated every year.

The 1st and 2nd teams played alongside teams from Pilgrims', Twyford and Sherfield in a 9-a-side tournament that is hosted in memory of Rory McDonagh, a former Farleigh pupil who tragically died. With Rory's family and closest Farleigh friend, Tom Andrews, in attendance, and independent, expert refereeing from Chris Weale (Director of Football at Sherborne School) and Mark Foster (Head of Football at Bryanston School), all eight teams played superbly and provided great entertainment throughout the afternoon.

From a Farleigh perspective, the performance of the 2nd team drawing 1-1 against Twyford's 1st team - with goalkeeper Sam (main picture) saving a penalty - was an absolute highlight and he was the talk of the tournament! The Cup was won by Pilgrims’ 1st team, but the real winner was the game of football, a game that Rory loved and at which he and Tom both excelled, at Farleigh and beyond. Tom made an excellent speech at the end, encouraging all the boys to enjoy their sport, their education and each other's company, to the max'. The whole tournament was played in tremendous spirit, in precisely the way that Rory played the game. Well done to all who took part.

In addition to the tournament, all the other teams, from U10 up to the 3rds, played in triangular matches with Twyford and Pilgrims’. The feedback from these games was excellent with a lot of positive results and very good performances. For many of the 5th team it has been a tough season, so the team’s positive performance capped off a very good day for Farleigh football.

Alan Wright, Director of Sport


November 15th 2022

Enjoy more photos of the Rory McDonagh Cup 2022 & other matches in your Planet eStream account here.