WATERFORD HAVE TAKEN the difficult decision to withdraw from the Uefa Youth League ahead of next month’s first-round meeting with Hammarby.
The Blues, who were crowned U19 SSE Airtricity League champions in October 2019, had been drawn away to the Swedish club, with the game scheduled to take place on 2 March.
However, due to the current Level 5 restrictions aimed at combatting the spread of Covid-19, the team has been unable to train ahead of the fixture.
In a statement released this afternoon, the Football Association of Ireland said: “The FAI and Waterford FC worked with the relevant authorities to find a solution but unfortunately the decision has been taken to withdraw from the competition.”
Waterford were set to follow in the footsteps of Bohemians, who were the League of Ireland’s representatives in the Uefa Youth League in each of the past two seasons.
UCD competed in 2017-18, after Cork City became the first Irish side to play in the competition in 2016-17 when they defeated HJK Helsinki before losing out to Roma.
“It is our foremost regret to have to make this decision, especially for our young players,” said Waterford operations manager Tony Burke.
“The club, working with the FAI, tried our utmost to try and find a way to compete in the competition but the travel restrictions and the inability to train and play made it impossible.
“Despite our disappointment, we fully understand that the health and wellbeing of our players and staff, along with their families, must take precedence over all other concerns during this dreadful pandemic.”
