August 29, 2006
For immediate release

A New Orleans soccer team received a special set of jerseys today - one year to the day since their uniforms were washed away by Katrina.

The Irish Football Association donated the tops to Finn McCool’s Football Club, named after the Irish bar in Mid City where they were formed. The pub is owned by three Northern Irish ex-pats and is the headquarters of both the Celtic and Rangers supporters’ clubs in the city. It was flooded with eight feet of water when the levees broke on August 29 last year and has since been gutted, rebuilt and reopened. The hurricane killed around 1,600 people in Louisiana and ravaged an area the size of Britain.

The IFA acted after hearing of the plight of the side that plays in the Southeastern Louisiana Adult Soccer Association League. When Captain Paul Medhurst’s Lakeview home was drowned by 12 feet of water they lost every piece of training gear and equipment, and the club’s players, who were less than two weeks away from their first-ever competitive game after eight months of training, were scattered around the world.

Coach Dave Ashton also lost his home and all his possessions, as did Club Secretary Jonathan Walsh who still immediately reported for Coast Guard duty to join the rescue effort. Dutch defender Frank Komduur stayed for five days after the storm and had to swim through nine feet of water to safety past three dead bodies.

The eclectic Finn McCool’s squad features players from four different continents and characters such as South African former anti-apartheid activist Benji Haswell, English recycling artist Mark Kirk and Uruguayan doctor Sebastian Villarreal. There are also players from both Northern and Southern Ireland.

Club President Sean Kennedy said: “Despite the death and destruction Katrina dished out to our home we were determined to get back to playing as soon as we could. Just six weeks after the hurricane hit we started training again despite difficulties like a city-wide curfew, patrolling National Guards troops, and our Uptown practice field being turned into a temporary military camp.

“We would like to thank the IFA for their kind gesture, and it has brought a smile to our faces at an emotional time for everyone in South Eastern Louisiana on the anniversary of the greatest natural disaster the US has ever seen.”

IFA Head of Marketing Geoff Wilson said: “At this poignant period in the history of this great American city we are delighted to do what we can to help this Irish pub team. We hope the new strip brings them success and we are happy they are promoting Northern Ireland in the Gulf States.”

Finn McCool’s pub part-owner and club sponsor Stephen Patterson paid for the green-and-white hoops Celtic kit which is the first-choice strip. Now the side can chose between it and the new dark green tops, a limited edition one-off retro kit produced for the 125th anniversary of the IFA and worn by the national side in their glamour friendly against Germany last year.

Finn McCool’s narrowly missed out on winning the SELASA Division Two title last season in their inaugural campaign, but their second-place finish was enough to see them promoted to the top tier. They will wear their new jerseys for the first time in the Fall season which kicks off next month.

Northern Ireland meanwhile are keen to build on their successful summer tour of the States, and are keen to attract soccer fans with Irish heritage to their website at www.irishfa.com