GALLERY: Uckfield Grasshoppers awards afternoon
Uckfield Grasshopper Football Club's Awards afternoon was held at the East Sussex National Golf Club Hotel at the end of June.
More than 500 players and their families attended the afternoon which was held to celebrate their players' achievements over the 2007/08 season, and also to proudly announce that the club had been awarded FA Charter Standard – Development Club status.
This is a prestigious and highly sought after award, with only 10 other clubs in Sussex achieving this standard, which is only awarded to those clubs who can show that they are committed towards providing excellence in:
Management
Child Protection Training
Qualified Coaches
Codes of Conduct
Insurance
Youth, Adult, Girls'/Women's Teams
Links To Schools
A Development Plan
Inclusion
Investment and Hard Work
Uckfield Grasshoppers' Chairman, Gordon Buckland, and founder and President of the club, Ian Bennett, receiving the FA Charter Standard Development Award from Kevin Tharme of Sussex County FA.
The Club was started in 1981 by a group of local parents getting together to provide "Football for All", and this remains a very strong principal of the club today.
More than 250 players are signed with the club from Under 6 level to the Under 16s; this includes several girls in the younger "mini-soccer" age groups and an Under 14s girls team at 11-a-side level.
In addition to being presented with the FA Charter, Uckfield Grasshoppers are delighted to welcome Clearwater Group as the Club's official sponsor. Steve Neilly and Nick Gill of Clearwater Group were present at the Awards, and have committed to provide all age groups with the same Club kit over the next 18 months. They will also help Grasshoppers to provide greater specialised coaching for their teams.
A new Trophy was awarded to Grasshoppers by Uckfield FM Radio and the family of Paddy Rae, the much loved Uckfield FM Radio presenter who sadly passed away last year.
In addition to his affiliation with Uckfield FM, Paddy had huge involvement in football, from playing for Brighton & Hove Albion, to helping young players get involved with football.
The managers of Uckfield Grasshoppers unanimously agreed that Taylor Mitchell should be awarded this Trophy. From the beginning of the year Taylor has been unwell, which has meant many trips to hospital and has put paid to his footballing career for the time being.
However, Taylor has shown courage, determination and an unwavering commitment, rarely letting the bad times get the better of him.
Whenever possible he continued to support his team, the Under 12s throughout the season and Taylor's positive, spirited attitude captures the essence of the Trophy and is an inspiration to all in the club.
The trophy was presented by the family of Paddy Rae and Mike Skinner, the Chairman of Uckfield FM Radio.
Grasshoppers would like to pass on their warm thanks and appreciation to Paddy's family and Uckfield FM for donating this wonderful trophy.
In addition to all of the above exciting news, there were the presentations to all the Uckfield Grasshoppers teams, with the Under 6, 7, 8 and 9 players receiving medals, and players' awards for the Under 10s to Under 16s as follows (for each age group the awards are for manager's player, players' player and most improved player, in that order):
U10s Flames: Joshua Faber, Tom Chown, Lily Smith
U10s Arrows: Callum Fuller-Blackford, Harry King, Jack King
U11s Grasshoppers: Fergus Wood, Jarvis Kelly, Brandon Pestano
U12s Grasshoppers: Thomas Clift, Harry Mcleod, Michael Sargeant
U12s United: Sam Espley, Chris Heal, Thomas Telford
U13s Grasshoppers: Benjo Potts, Dan Turner, Callum Brown
U13s United: James Egleton, Aaron Korotana, Jack Tomlinson
U14s Girls: Phoebe Smith, Emma Sharp, Raia Surridge
U14s Grasshoppers: Alex Williams, Ray Rabbett, Liam Heraty
U15s Grasshoppers: James Harvey, Michael Hopkins, George Curd
U16s Grasshoppers: Chris Kelly, Matt Skelton, Ben Acey.
Photographs were taken and are reproduced with the kind permission of Brett Butler.
Grasshoppers are always looking for the next Budding Beckham or Waltzing Walcott in all age groups. Please do come along, meet the friendly coaches and enjoy playing football. To get more information on Uckfield Grasshoppers visit www.uckfieldgrasshoppers.com
Don't forget girls, football is NOT just for boys. The Grasshoppers are looking to start a new Under 10s girls team – so they need you. Due to FA rules, girls have to play within a girls' team from the age of 11 onwards. If your daughter wants to prepare for this, by training with an all-girls team, contact the Club Secretary now (details below).
One last exciting development is a 'Football Summer School'. This is the first of its kind run by the Uckfield Grasshoppers. The course will run from Monday August 11 to Friday August 15 from 10am to 3pm. All coaches will be FA trained. Attendees will receive a certificate of achievement and a free gift. This course is open to any boys and girls from the ages of six to 16 years.
Costs are: 1 day - 15; 2 days - 28; 3 days - 35; 5 days - 50.
Uckfield Grasshoppers Members will receive a 20 per cent discount. For an application form, please contact the Uckfield Grasshoppers' Club Secretary on 01825 769284
The East Sussex National Golf Club Hotel also generously sponsored the event.
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Weather for Lewes
Wednesday 08 February 2012
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: -2 C to 2 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: North east
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Sunny spells
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