Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all our players, parents, members, supporters, volunteers and staff. 2021 has once again been a challenging year for us all, but as a Club we continue to grow on and off the pitch.
On the pitch the First team are looking very strong. The vast majority of performances this season have been very good and these are turning into points in the league. We look to finish 2021 as one of the in form teams in the league.
The FA cup run masterminded by Craig, his coaching team and the players will forever be cherished by us all at the Club. They did more than just make history, they truly put us on the map and we will forever be grateful for their efforts.
The Juniors and Pirates continue to grow, as a club we now have over 32 teams playing under the Colls badge, which makes us all immensely proud. The addition of the girls and ladies teams further strengthens and highlights our club motto ‘football for all’ . Thank you to Dave and his great team of coaches.
As we continue to increase our Junior and Pirate numbers the one thing we need is more space for training and games so that we are not turning away anyone from the game, which never sits right. This will be top priority in the New Year.
Our JPL teams have gone from strength to strength, likewise our Academy and Scholars teams. The future is certainly bright for people of all abilities at this Club.
Off the pitch we continue to be more than a football Club. The Food Hub continues to support local people and today I was so proud to be able to drop presents for our Food Hub children thanks to the unbelievable generosity of Rolling back the year’s football group from Sherburn In Elmet. Doing good things certainly means that you meet more and more good people.
Andy’s Man Club has also gone from strength to strength. We are so happy that Lee approached us to host and we couldn’t be prouder of the work he is doing with the lads.
We have also this December started our free coaching sessions for children and adults with disabilities/SEN and for children who qualify for Pupil Premium. These will continue into 2022 and beyond. We are also currently completing our second Happy Holiday Programme which through our proud partnership with Monkhill Sandwiches is providing the children with a warm lunch, activities through the day and a family meal to take home.
The Club is a great place to be and the buzz around the place is amazing, but we can and will continue to improve. Thanks to securing the Buildbase grant of building materials, our latest classrooms have now been completed. Our new Food Hub/Club shop is almost complete and the works will continue.
Improvements to follow in 2022 thanks to the Buildbase award include, renovated toilets, a new disabled toilet, a new roof, windows overlooking the pitch and better access to the second half of the main stand and not forgetting newly renovated changing rooms in the close season.
We also continue to explore other ways to improve the Ground with various stakeholders. The projects we are currently working on are; a newly renovated Shed End, major pitch improvements inside and outside the ground and a new Community Centre/stand in the next 24 months.
In conclusion we are on the up and we will continue to work hard in 2022 to ensure that we can give all our players, parents, members, supporters, volunteers, staff and the local community a Club they can continue to be proud of.
Have a great Christmas and New Year. We hope lots of you will be supporting the first team at our next home game on the 27th for some Christmas cheer vs Frickley Athletic .
Up the Colls!