FOOTBALL clubs across the country got an extra-special Christmas gift this year – a £1,000 grant to help keep their players on the pitch.
The Sun has funded 150 clubs with the cash injection to make sure no child misses out on footie because finances are tight at home.
Our Footie For All campaign highlighted how kids were being forced to drop out of clubs because of the cost-of-living crisis.
We then teamed up with Tesco Stronger Starts, which provides healthy food and activities for Children, to give away £150,000 to grassroots clubs across the country.
We invited teams who work with kids under the age of 18 to apply for one of the 150 £1,000 grants.
One very special team, who are celebrating being awarded a grant, is Sevenoaks Powerchair Club which gives teens and adults a chance to play the sport in specialist chairs.
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Head coach Adam McEvoy, 36, said: “Our players have a high level of disability so can’t access any other form of football.
“Getting this grant to make sure our chairs’ batteries are powered properly is brilliant. Each chair costs around £6,000 and we need them to last as long as possible, so our players don’t miss out.”
The Kent-based team has 15 players, aged between 10 and 25, who spend their Sunday mornings enjoying their version of a kickabout.
It also allows their parents a bit of respite from providing constant care, as they trust the coaches to look after their young ones.
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The team asks for a £15 contribution each month to help cover some of the sessions’ costs.
“Football, in a way, is a by-product of what we do,” Adam said.
“They love that when they come to football, they’re treated as a footballer. Nothing else matters for those few hours.
“We see these kids grow into polite, confident young people. It gives them so much more than just a game.”
Another club that has been awarded a grant is Coity Chiefs Girls FC in Coity, Bridgend, South Wales.
Under the guidance of LeeAnn Baker and her husband, the team has grown from 75 girls to 110 training every week.
LeeAnn said: “We’re so grateful for the money because it means we can expand the pitch space we rent to make sure all the girls who want to play football can be involved.
“Every week, we see the joy on the faces of all our players, who are having a chance to enjoy playing without getting comments from boys about how they shouldn’t play.
“It’s such a supportive environment — when a player gets injured, the others rally round to help. It’s so important girls have a space to play and develop their talent.”
In a bid to keep everyone involved, the club has a kit swap-shop, which keeps parents’ costs to a minimum as the girls grow.
Each player pays £14 a month to cover some of the costs and receive top-flight training.
Another girls’ team making sure women’s football has a bright future is Gornal Community Football club in the West Midlands. Coach Alan Moore, 62, has been running girls’ sessions for decades and is using our £1,000 grant to open up two new squads.
He said: “The two new sessions are for girls who have completed the free FA wildcat session and want to start playing competitively.
“It’s amazing to see their confidence grow — it’s so important girls have somewhere to play football.”
The club started the girls’ team five years ago and it has proved incredibly popular, especially in the wake of the Lionesses’ success.
The club, which has 18 teams of both genders, charges just £20 a month to play. If finances are tight, they allow kids to come for free.
Alan said: “Thank you to The Sun and Tesco for helping us get two extra teams — it means 24 more girls are playing in a squad.”
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Christine Heffernan, Tesco group communications director, said: “It’s clear that football clubs up and down the country need the support more than ever, and that we’re reaching hundreds more children as a result of this funding.
“The Tesco Stronger Starts and Footie For All partnership is getting children into doing what they love — playing footie more often.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
