July 16 2010 Blades end Arklow visit on a high
After spending the week enjoying pre-season training in the Arklow area, Sheffield United's youth academy squad ended their brief visit with a thorough examination, meeting Arklow Town's Foyle Cup-bound squad in a friendly game, played today at Bridgewater Centre Park.  The game itself saw both management teams fully utilising their squads, the game being played over three 40 minute periods.  Credit to both squads for maintaining a good tempo throughout what was indeed a highly entertaining affair.  The match itself ended 4-3 in Blades' favour, with Harry McGuire, Joe Ironside, Adam Hinchcliffe and Jordan Slew on target for the Yorkshire side.  Jonathan Kelty (2) and Daniel Ledwith netted for the home side, in front of a sizeable crowd.  United travel back to England in the morning to continue their pre-season training in advance of the upcoming FA Premier Academy season while Town get set to travel north, to compete in the Foyle Cup.

Images from today's meeting between Arklow Town and Sheffield United

July 9 2010 Blades stars set for Arklow pre-season visit
Sheffield United's Academy squad are coming to Arklow next week for a week's pre-season training in advance of the 2010-11 FA Premier Academy League season.  The squad will stay in the local Arklow Bay Hotel, availing of the magnificent facilities in both the gym and the pool.  They will also train at Bridgewater Centre Park on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons, July 13 and 14 respectively.  A further session will take place at the Community College on Thursday morning, between 10am and midday before rounding off the week's endeavour with a fixture against Arklow Town Under 19's, at Bridgewater Centre Park, later on Thursday afternoon, July 15, with a 3.45pm kick off.  The home team are preparing for a trip to Derry to participate in the Foyle Cup which kicks off on July 19 and runs till July 24.  Town have been drawn in Group A alongside Ballyclare Comrades, Morecambe FC and Oxford United.  The outing against the Blades should therefore prove beneficial for both squads.  Add into the mix the presence of both Aaron Barry and Shane Murray in Sheffield colours, it should indeed prove to be a fixture worth seeing as the two Arklow lads return home for a brief pre-season workout.

Jan 23 Defeat for Academy side after bright start
Lar Mahony’s U12 Academy side played only their second game together in Coolock earlier this afternoon, putting in a very encouraging performance for three quarters of the game before running out of steam in the last ten minutes.  The Academy side consisted of five of the U11A squad and ten of the U12A squad and they looked the more accomplished of the two teams in the opening 15 minutes, passing the ball very well and creating a number of half chances.  Their early dominance paid off in the 15th minute when Morgan Harris played a good through ball to fellow striker Dáire O'Conchubhair and he ran 25 yards before coolly slotting the ball home.  Town should have gone in ahead at the break but North Dublin scored a somewhat fortuitous goal in the 23rd minute when William Horsman superbly batted away a shot from outside the box only for the rebound to be prodded home by the home sides centre forward.  The game was more even in the second half and although impressive left winger Liam Scales almost scored when he chipped the keeper in the 38th minute, North Dublin began to exert a higher degree of pressure that the Academy struggled to cope with at times.  North Dublin’s greater degree of fitness appeared to tell in the last 10 minutes when they scored three goals in the 50th, 55th and 58th minutes respectively.  The 4-1 scoreline does not do justice to the Academy side's performance and they will be looking to build on this good start as they face other such Academy teams during the second half of the season.

Squad:  William Horsman, Darragh Fitzgerald, David Boddy, Jack Somers, Leslie Sharpe, Darren Furlong, Patrick Dempsey, Mikey Quigley, Liam Scales, Daniel O'Hare, Morgan Harris, Dáire O'Conchubhair, Darren Beevor, Joshua Moody, Aaron Healy.