Four Queensland zones have donated footballs to local clubs in Cairns following this year’s Football Queensland (FQ) Community Cup.

The state-wide junior football tournament saw hundreds of young footballers from across the state compete against their peers at Endeavour Park, Cairns from Sunday, 30 June to Saturday, 6 July.

After the Grand Finals were played on the last day of competition, a number of Queensland football associations came together to donate their match balls from the tournament to two local football clubs.

FQ along with Far North Queensland (FNQ) Football, Football Gold Coast, Football Brisbane and Sunshine Coast Football donated over 60 footballs to clubs Edge Hill United FC and Saints Soccer Club Cairns, whose home ground Endeavour Park held this year’s FQ Community Cup.

The Cairns clubs, which have a strong player base from refugee backgrounds, will use the donated balls for junior programs at their clubs.

Both Edge Hill United FC and Saints Soccer Club Cairns have built links with the Safe Streets program in Cairns, helping to cover costs of registration fees, uniforms and transport for players involved in the program from all cultures and economic backgrounds.

In addition to those donated to the two football clubs, match balls used throughout the tournament were also provided to local groups in Cairns who are doing work in remote Indigenous communities in the region.

FQ would like to thank FNQ Football, Football Gold Coast, Football Brisbane and Sunshine Coast Football for their involvement.