A LOCAL football team had a game to remember this month after a touring Australian team visited Haydock for a match up.

Founded in 1996, Haydock Tigers have 15 teams ranging from the under 7s to under 16s and is affiliated with the Open Age Haydock FC team,

Following a WhatsApp message that came "out of the blue", the club's under 15's team soon realised that they had an opportunity to face up to Mansfield State High School, a team from Brisbane that is based more than 15,000km away.

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St Helens Star: The game ended in a 1-1 drawThe game ended in a 1-1 draw (Image: Craig Finney)
Challenging for the division 6 league title in the Warrington Junior Football League, Haydock's under 15's felt that the opportunity to challenge themselves with an international opponent was too good to miss.

Craig Finney, coach for the under 15s, said: "I thought the game was too good of an opportunity to miss, for both the team and the club, and I was happy to receive the green light from our chairman and club secretary.

"We’ve had never played an international team before so it was too good of an opportunity to turn down and see how teams from other countries play."

Following the tough game, which finished as a 1-1 draw, the Australian team was invited to Haydock Cricket Club for some post-match refreshments.

Craig added: "We set our goal this season on winning the league so we are heading in the right direction.

"We’ve got a great bunch of lads who work hard for each other, and some have played together for a while now, so it’s been great to see them develop together over that time."