Lochend Football Academy have plenty to look forward to with their under 14s and under-16s both in the semi-finals of their respective Scottish Cups over the next few weeks.
The under-14s will play Bonnyton in Ayrshire on 1 March while exactly a week later the under-16s travel to Breoughty Ferry for a tie with Dundee United.
Lochend are the only club in the country to have two teams still in national cup action and this is the second occasion they’ve done so having had success in 2023/24 season with their under-15s winning the cup and the then under-14s beaten finalists.
Officials are rightly proud of such achievements by one of Edinburgh’s smallest club crediting excellent coaching and hard work by players developing along with supportive parents.
The club was founded in 2010 as Lochend Football Academy by Ian Fergus and Jimmy Urquhart having previously been Lochend Youth.
Since then Ian and Jimmy have worked hard to create an environment for young people to enjoy football and fitness, learn and develop and have instilled in them some good core values. They both take care of everything from kids coaching to emptying the bins.
Ian holds the uefa A license and the uefa A elite youth license and heads up the youth side of coaching and coach mentoring with Jimmy leading the junior academy and developing the next groups to come through the club.
A small charity board led by Ian works hard to ensure it can provide the equipment the club’s facility needs with Ian, Jimmy, Martyn Dickson, Iain Budge, Simon Shepherd, Paul Byrne and Sean Urquhart a massive part of the success story. Most of these individuals are also voluntary board trustees for the club’s charity and club fundraising endeavours.
Adding to the club’s prestige is the fact they received the Kings Award for voluntary service holders being the first in the Capital to achieve the accolade which was presented by Robert Aldridge, Lord Provost of Edinburgh.
Ian Fergus says: “For us success is measured in the young people playing and enjoying football. However, it is worth shouting about a ‘wee’ club punching well above its weight and flying the red and white of Lochend and the surrounding area.”
