A MILITARY football team has been victorious in the final of an Army-organised tournament.

The Army FA Challenge Cup was first established in 1888, making it one of the oldest cup competitions in the world.

This year's tournament saw Colchester Garrison's 3rd Battalion The Parachute Regiment beat Woodbridge’s 23 Parachute Engineer Regiment in a hard-fought 3-2 contest.

Lance Corporal Dominic Walmsley, 3 PARA captain, said: “This is massive for 3 PARA - we’re not known as a footballing unit, so to win this competition for the first time is huge.

“From the first minute it was tough. For them to score so early was damaging for morale, but we got the ball down and the paratrooper mentality kicked in from then until the final minute.

“I thought the winning goal would come and we got the job done.”

LCpl Walmsley also praised the quality of the 23 Para Engr Regt footballers.

Away from the football pitch, they are 3 PARA’s stablemates in 16 Air Assault Brigade Combat Team, the British Army’s global response force.

He added: “We knew 23 Parachute Engineer Regiment would be fit and fight to the end, when both teams were flooding people forward.

“We were both pushing for the goal, which is the airborne way.”