LEYTON ORIENT Community Sports Programme took part in the inaugural London United Community Football Tournament to launch the capital's legacy programme for England's 2018 World Cup bid.
This was the first time all 15 professional football clubs across London have come together for what proved to be a successful groundbreaking event. Premier League Champions Chelsea hosted the tournament at their state-of-the-art training complex in Cobham, with sides, including the O's, all competing.
Kicking off just a week before England began their World Cup campaign in South Africa, the tournament aims to bring clubs together to tackle community problems through the nation's number one sport.
Girls' and Boys' teams from each of the club's community programmes battled it out at the one-day competition in front of England 2018 ambassador and former Chelsea FC and Charlton Athletic defender Paul Elliott and the Mayor's Sports Commissioner, Kate Hoey. Britain's Got Talent freestyling competitor, Jeremy Lynch was also in attendance to display his bag full of tricks.
Kate Hoey, the Mayor's Sports Commissioner, said: "The process of bidding for the World Cup has already produced a legacy and marks a change in how community programmes work together across the capital. The London United football tournament offers a competition that many youngsters from across London will be able to participate in and shows how committed we are to delivering community development through football."
London's clubs all run successful and respected community development programmes that together reach more than 50,000 Londoners each week. The London United Community Partnership will give London clubs the opportunity to work together to share and expand their current community initiatives, maximising existing resources and presenting a united approach to community development through football.
Orient's team were unlucky not to advance to the final stages, losing only to eventual finalist Charlton in their final group game. A win against the Addicks would have seen them progress following draws against Fulham, Crystal Palace and a win over Brentford.
The boys' tournament was won by Tottenham Hotspur who beat Charlton 1-0 in a close fought final whilst the Girls' tournament was won by Charlton who beat Fulham 3-2 on penalties after extra time.
Andre Taylor, 19, from Hackney, who represented the O's, said: "The tournament was really enjoyable and I got to meet new people from different areas in a bid to cutting out the postcode barriers. The facilities at Chelsea's training ground are amazing and it has been a pleasure to play on. To top it off the weather has been great".
Fari Khan, LOCSP Community Development Coach was pleased with the tournament: "We brought along a team with players from three different boroughs, Newham, Hackney and Tower Hamlets to represent LOCSP. This was a great example of uniting our communities and bringing people together.
"They all enjoyed the experience of competing against different teams of a high standard and were unlucky not to get out of the group stages but overall it has been a pleasant day out with some lovely weather".
