omission

Crusaders and Derry City will join forces to commence legal proceedings over their omission from Stage Two of the Northern Ireland Football Fund.

In September, the Department of Communities announced 20 clubs from across Northern Ireland would progress to the next round of the process with three different tiers of funding available.

Of the 41 clubs eligible to apply, 38 submitted bids, leaving those who missed out bitterly disappointed.

Both Crusaders and Derry City were two to miss out and having considered the decision, jointly confirmed on Wednesday evening they will now lodge legal proceedings against the decision to omit them.

In a statement, Crusaders said: “Following an extra-ordinary general meeting of Crusaders Football Club members on Wednesday, 8 October 2025, Crusaders FC have determined to join Derry City FC to commence legal proceedings to challenge the exclusion of both clubs from Stage 2 of the Northern Ireland Football Fund.”

The League of Ireland club expressed similar sentiments.

“Derry City FC have made the decision to join with Crusaders FC to commence legal proceedings to challenge the exclusion of both clubs from Stage 2 of the Northern Ireland Football Fund process,” they said in a statement.

“We believe we were left with no other option.”

The Stormont Executive has set £36.2m aside, but Communities Minister Gordon Lyons estimated the departmental cost of the 20 projects would come to “just over £82m”, while the “estimated total project costs” are £98m.

The big winners were NIFL Premiership clubs Glentoran and Cliftonville who progressed in the third and most expensive tier of over £6m.

The middle bracket of applications between £1.5m to £6m saw 13 successful applications, while five of of less than £1.5m also progressed.

Former Wales and Lions three-quarter Dafydd James says the lack of a Welshman in the line-up “says exactly where Welsh rugby is and it’s worrying”.

James, a Lions Test cap against Australia in 2001, said: “I didn’t think he’d [Morgan] get in, unfortunately, because unless he was going to start, I didn’t think they were going to put him on a bench, which is a travesty.

“But just purely on the basis of there’s so many back-row options there, it didn’t look from the first couple of games that Jac was figuring as his [Farrell’s] main seven, which is bitterly disappointing.

“It’s sobering and a sad indictment of the way the game has gone in Wales. Only two players being selected is hard, and you’d have to say on the back of 18 losses we were always going to be up against it trying to get many more players.

“I thought there might have been four going on the tour, and we’d be in with a chance [of players in the Test XV].

“And I thought with Williams, who started his campaign on the Lions tour, he was looking sharp.

“He was probably my tip for starting nine, but unfortunately he pulled a hamstring and then Jac stood up. He didn’t really figure that much in the Argentina game, but that could be just a little bit rusty, not knowing the team members around you.

“And then he had an exceptional game where he had a man of the match performance and put himself back in contention.

“I would have picked him personally, but I’m just reading between the lines he [Farrell] seems to favour Curry, [Josh] Van der Flier and obviously [Henry] Pollock.”