Thirty members of Kirkby United F.C. from Kirkby-in-Furness have just returned after a successful four-day tour to Malta.

The group consisted of a Senior over 40 team ( 7 of the squad are over 50!) and a team of U-23 , the current Kirkby United first team.

The seniors played two games against ex-professional players and coaches from Floriana, a Maltese Professional club. The first game was a 1-1 draw and saw the seniors playing against ex-international and ex-professional players. Fortunately the senior players had been training hard for the trip and fitness helped in the hot conditions. The following evening saw Floriana field a much younger fitter team and the Villagers went down 4-2.

The younger team lost 5-0 the first night against a team containing four current Floriana premier league players. The following night game saw the junior side lose narrowly 3-2 to another team containing professional players.

The hospitality shown to all the Kirkby United party was outstanding.

The club would like to thank their sponsors for making the trip possibl. The C.G.P. Kirkby parish council, Leck Construction Barrow, Moorland service station Kirkby, Livingstons solicitors Ulverston, Furness cars and commercials Ireleth, Tim Martin Dairyman Kirkby, William Todd Stonemason Kirkby. The staff at Coniston Corporate embroidery and Sports World Barrow.