FROM THE NEWSROOM:

Some eight years ago, three guys who met for lunchtime workouts at a local gym came up with a great idea.

All three had kids who played soccer. Why not, they asked, resurrect the old Lions Cup soccer tournament that used to coincide with the Lions Club fish fry, give it a new name and get more kids than ever to take part?

Hence, the Daily Pilot Cup was born.

We at the newspaper will forever owe those three guys, local attorney Kirk McIntosh, former Daily Pilot Editor William Lobdell and former Managing Editor Steve Marble, a huge debt of gratitude for spearheading that effort — as will the 2,000-plus kids who will take part in the eighth annual tourney that runs from Tuesday through Sunday.

Also, it should be noted that we have some major sponsors who have offered financial, coaching and administrative support to the tournament over the years. Those sponsors this year include Hoag Memorial Hospital Presbyterian, Newport Orthopedics, CM 900, C.J. Segerstrom and Sons, the Newport-Mesa Soccer Club and, of course, the city of Costa Mesa and the Newport-Mesa Unified School District.

We are grateful to all of them as well.

Last but not least, this tournament would not exist if not for McIntosh, the tournament director, who along with his wife, Sue, spends hours putting together teams and schedules and game brackets.

It’s all a labor of love for McIntosh, whose five daughters played soccer themselves.

I’m sure I speak for my friends Lobdell and Marble that this tournament has far exceeded all of our wildest imaginations.

The first year out, we had about 500 kids take part. The Pilot Cup is four times the size now and takes up at least three facilities: the Farm and Costa Mesa High and Davis Elementary schools.

In fact, we reported Tuesday that the Daily Pilot Cup will field a record 148 teams this year, up from the 130 teams one year ago.

So stay tuned for our sports coverage over the next few days. We’ll have game stories, photos, videos and a photo gallery of shots from the tournament.

For a look at the gallery from the first day action, go to www.dailypilot.com/shared -content/gallery/?galleryid=13.

And for those of you who have never seen the Pilot Cup in person, I encourage you to take a trip over to the Costa Mesa Farm Complex and watch a few matches.

But be warned. It will make a soccer fan out of you.