Hammers Stars Support Youth Football

WEST Ham United stars Teddy Sheringham and Marlon Harewood launched this year's Coca-Cola English Schools Cup and helped put last season's girls' champions, St Bernard's High School and Arts College, through their paces in a training session at the Club's Chadwell Heath Training Ground.

The Coca-Cola English Schools Cup is the biggest schools' football competition in Europe and West Ham United were pleased to welcome the reigning girls' Under-13s champions for training at Chadwell Heath.

The team, from Westcliff on Sea in Essex, were given the chance to take part in a Premier League skills session with Hammers first-team coach Peter Grant, as well as getting some tips from West Ham's strike-force.

The girls' were then given the chance to put Teddy and Marlon on the spot about their careers and life back in the Premiership.

The Essex team beat Nottingham's West Bridgeford School in the Under-13 girls' final at Villa Park last season and this year 40,000 youngsters from more than 2,600 schools across the country will be looking to follow in their footsteps for a place at the coveted national finals day.

Teddy was delighted to give up his time to support a tournament which he feels is a great opportunity for young people.

He said: "It's great there is a tournament like this for youngsters.

"Youth football - be it for boys or girls - is so important. Kids need coaching and the opportunity to learn new things and it's great to be able to hold an event like this at Chadwell Heath.

"You are never too old to learn new things. I had plenty of people telling me when I was younger that I wouldn't make it.

"But the one piece of advice I can tell youngsters is to keep going and believe in yourself."