Northern Ireland v Korea Republic

Words Nigel Tilson

The Irish Football Association’s Education and Heritage Centre is running a series of tours hosted by some of Northern Ireland’s legendary players. LEGENDARY NORTHERN IRELAND PLAYERS HOST TOURS AT STADIUM

Former Northern Ireland midfielder Jim Magilton got the new Legends Tours at the Education and Heritage Centre up and running.

The centre at the National Football Stadium at Windsor Park, which is celebrating its first birthday this month, has lined up the likes of Keith Gillespie, Pat Jennings, Sammy Clingan and Tommy Wright to lead the Legends Tours. The tours are being staged on the last Sunday of each month and ex-Ipswich Town, Southampton and Oxford United playmaker Jim Magilton (52 caps) got the ball rolling by leading a tour for competition winners last month. Keith Gillespie, the former Newcastle United, Blackburn Rovers and Manchester United star who won 86 caps for his country, is next up - tomorrow (25 March, 1pm start). Then it’s the turn of Sammy Clingan, the ex- Nottingham Forest, Norwich City and Coventry City midfielder (39 caps) who currently plies his trade with Glenavon, on 29 April. And Sammy will be followed by St Johnstone manager Tommy Wright (31 caps), who played for Newcastle United and Manchester City, on 27 May. Fellow goalkeeper Pat Jennings, the former Spurs and Arsenal custodian who is Northern Ireland’s

most capped player with 119 appearances, has agreed to lead a tour later this year. Each tour has a maximum of 30 people. Following tea and coffee, ticket holders enjoy a walk around the Education and Heritage Centre and then a behind the scenes tour of the stadium. The experience ends with a question and answer session with each legend in the stadium’s media centre. And there is also a photographer on hand to take pictures of visitors with the legends. The Education and Heritage Centre tells the story of Northern Ireland football using a variety of media, interactive displays and key artefacts from the 1880s to the present day. Visitors are able to relive the atmosphere of famous nights, gain insights into the drama on and off the pitch and feel the rush of emotions shared by everyone inside the stadium - win, lose or draw. Tickets for Legends Tours cost £30 each and the forthcoming tours are aimed at fans aged 16-plus. Go to the Irish FA website (www.irishfa.com) for further details.

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www.irishfa.com