A NORTH-EAST university's Gaelic football team will fly the flag for the region this weekend after reaching the sport's national finals.

Sunderland University's team, which won through to the finals after an impressive unbeaten run in the regional stages of the competition, will be battling it out with the best Gaelic football clubs in the UK in a bid to be crowned national champions.

The team beat tough opposition in Leeds, Hull and Teesside - winning all their games - to become champions of the North.

But they will have to be at their best if they are to do well in the national finals in Birmingham, today and tomorrow. They face teams from Brunel, Dundee, Liverpool and Manchester universities, all of which have a long tradition in Gaelic football.

The sport, which is an offshoot of a more violent medieval game, has taken off in a big way over the past few years.

Sunderland's squad includes two Irish students who play for county teams back in Ireland.

Forward Eoin Reen said: "This year we have the strongest squad ever and if we play like we did in the North Championships we should do well."