Dooley and Boylan in squad to face England
RISING Coleraine stars Stephen Dooley and Sam Boylan have been included in the Northern Ireland squad to take on England in the opening game of the Centenary Shield this Friday, February 26.
The duo were in the squad for the recent friendly against Australia and they will be hoping to help the province to a victory over the English, with whom they shared the title with last year.
Under 18 Manager, Bob Ramsey, is in no doubt that Friday's match will have a significant bearing on the outcome of this season's competition.
"We proved last season by coming back from a loss to the Republic that one defeat does not end your championship hopes but it would certainly make it more difficult to retain the title," said Ramsey.
"At international level you expect every match to be difficult but games against England are especially challenging. Last season 1-0 victory in Macclesfield was our first success against the English in four years.
"Before then our record had been excellent with five wins and a draw in eight meetings and I am hoping that we can put together another run of victories against England." added the Manager.
The Under 18 team began the season with a 1-1 draw against Australia in January before going to Jersey where they defeated the hosts 1-0 and 5-1 to retain the Lynn Nicholson Trophy.
"The games in Jersey are always a very important part of our preparation for the Centenary Shield and the two victories there will be a big boost to the team's confidence," added Ramsey.
The kick off has been brought forward to 1 o'clock so that local schools can bring along a large support and schools officials are expecting a bumper crowd.
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Weather for Coleraine
Wednesday 23 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 11 C to 22 C
Wind Speed: 14 mph
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Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 12 C to 21 C
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