THEY left their Marsh Park pavilion having rarely played outside of Oxford, never mind on foreign shores.

But after the trip of a lifetime to take part in a youth football camp in Oxford's twin city of Perm in Russia, 17 youngsters have returned to the city as international footballers.

Earlier this year players from East Oxford United Football Club raised £10,000 to take part in the camp, which included football tournaments and friendly matches against youngsters from Russia, Tajikistan and other countries.

The squad was welcomed back to Oxford on Tuesday by councillors and fans of the club.

Club treasurer and fixture secretary Abdillahi Omar said the children – who were aged between 11 and 15 – had the trip of a lifetime.

He said: "It really good. The players really enjoyed it.

"About half of the kids had never been abroad before.

"This was the first time for them to go away and their first time flying. It was fantastic."

The players who were accompanied by Mr Omar and club chairman Hassan Sabrie on the two-week trip.

They raised the cash through a series of fundraising activities including packing bags at Tesco, washing cars and taking part in the United Oxford Cup.

Dozens of residents also made individual donations.

Oxford City Council gave £500 towards the total along with funding from the Oxford Perm Association – which promotes links with Oxford's twin city – and £3,200 from the ward budgets of 11 city councillors.

Mr Omar said the players could not wait to start their new season after learning new skills at the camps.

He added: "It was a great experience for them and something they will never forget.

"They are looking forward to going back to school to tell their mates stories. It was really nice."

The club has been invited to return to take part in a 'mini world cup' next year in Perm.

Oxford Bus Company sponsored the team and provided free return bus tickets to the airport.

The project was organised by Perm City Council and the Youth Sports Federation.

Dee Sinclair, city councillor and executive board member for culture and communities, said: "It was wonderful to see people and organisations from across Oxford come together to help make this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity happen for East Oxford United Football Club.

"Oxford is twinned with cities around the world, and the city council works hard to give residents the chance to meet people from other cultures because we know how important it can be to bring communities together."