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COMMUNITY PARTNER
AFC Youth Academy hosts Katoni Cup The Aberdeen FC Youth Academy proudly saw the return of its elite 5v5 indoor tournament, the Katoni Cup, hosted at Aberdeen Sports Village at the end of last month following a two-year absence due to COVID restrictions. In partnership with long-running event sponsor, Katoni Engineering, the highly competitive tournament saw Club Academy Scotland teams from the U13’s (2011) age category compete to win the coveted Katoni Cup. A huge success in previous years, the event has attracted the top teams in Scotland, with the 2022 edition featuring Celtic, Dundee, Hamilton Accies, Heart of Midlothian, Hibernian, Ross County, and Rangers who joined for the first time this year. CEO at Katoni Engineering, James Bream, said: “We are delighted to have seen the return of the Katoni Cup. This tournament truly reflects our values in supporting the development of young talent in Aberdeen to reach their maximum potential, as this will only benefit our region.”
“The talent on show at the tournament is always outstanding, this weekend was no different and it makes for a brilliant community event.” The tournament was a fun filled afternoon with music between matches providing added atmosphere. Celtic came out on top as the Katoni Cup winners, while the hosts Aberdeen won the Katoni Shield. With some outstanding talent on show, Hamilton Accies took home both Player of the Tournament categories. Kai Stevenson won Goalkeeper of the Tournament and Paul Francis was voted Player of the Tournament. The return of the Katoni Cup was a significant milestone for AFC Youth Academy following two years of restricted activity as AFC Foundation Phase Manager, Liam McGarry, explained. He said: “Sadly, due to the pandemic we have been unable to host the Katoni Cup for a number of years, so it was fantastic to be in a position to host the fourth edition of the tournament. It’s always been a huge success with the competing teams.”
“The tournament is a showcase event for us where the best players in the country at that age group are able to display their technical and creative ability in a competitive environment.” “As a Club we are very proud to host events like this in Aberdeen and I think it is testament to the standard of the tournament that all teams who have previously competed returned this year and we continue to receive very positive feedback.” “We are extremely grateful to Katoni Engineering for their continued support. They remain committed to playing their part in helping us nurture and develop the top talent in the north-east of Scotland.” Robbie Hedderman, Business Development Manager for Aberdeen Football Club added: “Katoni Engineering believe in helping the next generation of young people in Aberdeen to achieve and to be the best version of themselves and it wouldn’t be possible to run a tournament of such a high standard without their support. Aberdeen Football Club are proud to continue a relationship with such a community focused business.”
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