A new partnership between Town, the Suffolk FA, Ipswich & Suffolk Youth League and the South Suffolk Youth League will give U7s sides the chance to play regular fixtures on the FieldTurf at Portman Road from September.

Suffolk FA has successfully run U7s 4v4 festivals for several seasons with Town hosting a number of them.

Steve McGavin (pictured), head of recruitment at the Town academy, told the club site: “We are the focal point of the community and we like to think we have an interaction with lots of different age groups, and for children of this age it is their first introduction to any sort of organised football.

“What we are trying to create is the right environment for these young people to really enjoy their football.

“The U7 festivals have been running for three years now in conjunction with Suffolk FA, the South Suffolk Youth League and the Ipswich Sunday Youth League, and they have been a huge success.

“We want to build on that and make it bigger so that more teams can experience playing small-sided 4v4 matches within a professional environment but one which is also based on fun.”

Nathan French, football development manager at the Suffolk FA, added: “This new partnership is a fantastic opportunity for players to receive more match time in an environment which will give them a great football experience.

“Steve McGavin and Ipswich Town have been fantastic over the past few seasons, allowing so many players to have the experience of playing outside Portman Road.

“I know this has been really well received by the clubs, parents and most importantly the players.”

To find out more, email michael.cornall@suffolkfa.com.

Photo: Action Images

strikalite added 20:34 - Apr 28 Just make sure you keep the parents well away, they just ruin it for the kids.. Let them play and enjoy themselves without Dad reliving his dream through his kid!!
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warwickblue added 00:12 - Apr 29 Strikalite - I agree that you will see and hear that at parks across Ipswich every Saturday and Sunday and even (regrettably) at some school matches; but you won't find that down at Portman Road. The feedback I get from kids there is that they are superbly looked after.
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