Eoin Bradley praises contributors as Kilrea United are saved

The Coleraine & District League side were facing extinction after being hit with a 10,000 CHF (Swiss Francs) fine by FIFA following an eligibility dispute over teenager Pierce Worrall-Hill.

The incident dates back to the 2018/19 season and cost the club the league title after they were hit with a nine-point deduction.

But on May 18 this year the a decision was made by world football's governing body that Kilrea United "failed to comply with articles 5 par.1, 9 par. 1, 19 and Annexes 3 of the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players".

The club was given 30 days from the date of notification - May 20 - to pay the fine, and because it was under than 15,000 CHF, it cannot be appealed.

Club Chairman Davy Shiels said they were "in limbo and pondering our options".

A meeting was held on Wednesday evening and a fundraising page was put online.

Within an hour of going live £3,000 had been raised, and by 10am on Thursday the club had hit their target of £8,500.

Kilrea United is a club close to Bradley’s heart - both he and his brother Paddy played for them, and his dad managed them - so he is delighted the club has survived.

“The club means a lot to me, and I’ll probably end up there once I finish with Coleraine, so for it to be saved means so much,” he said.

“I don’t think we expected to raise all the money, but to have done it inside 12 hours is unbelievable.

“It shows just how kind-hearted people are, especially at this time.

“The football club and the Gaelic club are so important to the village, it would have been devastating if this had led to it folding.”

At the time of going to press over £12,000 had been donated to the club’s GoFundMe page, and Bradley has suggested the possibility of the extra money going to Lisburn league side TW Braga, who have been hit with a similar fine, as well as supporting charity.

“It would be nice to be able to use the extra money donated in a good way by helping out TW Braga, who are going through a similar situation, and also some charities,” he said.

“Hopefully now both clubs can put this behind them and concentrate on football again once we are all able to get back to playing following the coronavirus pandemic.”

The club posted a thank-you on their Facebook page.

It read: "Kilrea United Football Club would like to say a massive thank you to everyone who donated to help save our football club. £8,500 raised in under 24 hours. Any further money that is donated will be given to charity. Again we can’t thank everyone enough."

Kilrea United are also calling on people to support TW Braga in their fundraising effort on GoFundMe.

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