Chairman Parker steps down from AFC Uckfield Town

Parker’s resignation, which took place at the end of 2023, ends a long period of association with the club which was formed in 1988 as Wealden FC, then latterly (and briefly) rebranding to AFC Uckfield before merging with Uckfield Town FC in July 2014 to form AFC Uckfield Town.

Tom was a key figure in the foundation of Wealden FC, serving as long-time Chairman and providing the club with the ground at The Oaks on Eastbourne Road, as well as financially supporting the development and progress of the Club.

This journey began in the Mid Sussex Football League and led to the Club joining the Sussex County League 10 years later in the old Division 3, before gaining promotion a further two years later.

In 2010-11, Wealden FC were renamed AFC Uckfield, and their first team went on to win Division 2, earning promotion to the top tier of the Sussex County League for the first time.

After demotion due to ground grading, the Club once again gained promotion back to the renamed Premier Division, of what was to become the Southern Combination Football League.

This time, it was as AFC Uckfield Town, in the first season following the merger with Uckfield Town FC in 2014/15. The Club’s first team consolidated their position in the top tier of county football and achieved the town's first FA Cup victory, against Glebe in August 2018.

Parker's work alongside first-team manager Anthony Storey brought the club some excellent results between 2017 and 2020, with several dramatic cup matches including an outstanding run to the FA Vase Fourth Round in 2018-19, when they were the last Sussex side standing.

The Covid-19 pandemic scuppered some momentum around the first team, but Parker helped ease the transition after Storey's exit in April 2020.

The Club remains under the leadership of Chairman Justin Farrow, who took over the role in the summer of 2023, having previously served as Chairman of Uckfield Town FC.

Farrow leads an active, enthusiastic, and hardworking committee all striving to deliver a Club that is integrated into the local community, offering opportunity and development for local players across all our teams and anyone to become involved in helping the Club on and off the pitch.

In addition to the first team, the Club also run a reserve team in the Mid Sussex Football League, two U18 teams - one in the MSFL and the other in the Crowborough & District Junior Football League - and a Ladies team which was reintroduced after some 20 years and has enjoyed success in its first two seasons in the Sussex County Women & Girls Football League.

The Club also has an agreed pathway with the town’s junior football club, Uckfield Grasshoppers, to support the transition from youth to adult football.Farrow said: "Everyone involved with the club would like to thank Tom for his dedication, commitment and hard work over the last 35 years. Tom has been synonymous with the club for such a long time, and we thank him for the foundations he helped to build and wish him well for the future. But now is the time to move forward without Tom as we have for the past few months already."The Club is currently negotiating a lease with Tom, who remains the owner of The Oaks. It’s fair to say that the facilities need significant investment to overcome issues which we are trying to manage as best we can with very little or no funds. The clubhouse needs a new roof, for instance, and there are improvements we need to make both on and around the pitch. Running a football club is not only dependent on the hard work of our committee members and willing volunteers (of which we have too few), but is an expensive business too and it is money that needs to be found and we are hoping that help is out there, however great or small that may be."Let’s not pretend this is just a pastime, as we have people spending almost as much of their spare time working for the Club as they seem to spend at home! And we really do need help to keep this Club (which as Uckfield Town FC has a history back to 1880), to continue, to evolve and grow for many years to come. We will be setting up a crowdfunding initiative, so if anyone can help, please do so or come and see us and find out how you can support us."It has been a difficult year and for now, all our efforts and focus are on a strong finish to the season and the challenge of taking AFC Uckfield Town forward. Nothing would give me greater satisfaction than seeing the football club being embedded within the culture, lives and hearts of all of Uckfield.”