Bishop Auckland boys are on the verge of glory after overcoming Liverpool in the semi-final of the Under-15s English Schools Trophy. In atrocious conditions in the North-West on Saturday, a goal 16 minutes from time by Seb Coady sealed the tie for the under-dogs against the highly-fancied Liverpudlians.

The victory means the North-East side will take on Portsmouth, 4-1 winners over Exeter and East Devon, in the two-legged showpiece.

It had looked like Bishops had spurned their chance when David Dowson hit the post, but minutes later the same player fired in another effort which the goalkeeper parried only to see Coady, under pressure from a defender, bury the ball in the back of the net. Secretary Garry Purcell said it was a terrific but hard-fought win with Bishops withstanding some first-half pressure before being able to strike the decisive blow in the second.

"This is the cream of the Under-15s in the country," he said. "There were 220-odd associations entered in the competition and we are down to the last two - it's the FA Cup for schoolboys.

"They were a good team and it was just a very tight game. They had some good players, they had the captain of England at Under-15 level in the centre of the park - he was the best player on the field." As for the final, the first leg of which will be in the North-East with the climax possibly being held at Premier League Portsmouth's Fratton Park ground, Purcell says it was a step into the unknown.

"We don't know anything about them," he said. "It's the first time they have been through to this stage of the competition. They were delighted."