Hi everybody

February has been a very frustrating month for us all. The weather has played havoc with the fixture schedule and we can only hope now for the weather to improve as we enter Spring!

We thought our members might like a brief update on the plans we have in place for our football club:

Brinkley
No doubt many of you will be aware that we have put in for planning permission at Brinkley. Our aim is to completely renovate the clubhouse, invest in a new main pitch and improve the drainage so that the pitches are less vulnerable to wet weather.

Last week, myself and Richard Wilson met with Southwell Town Council to explain the clubs plans in full. We were encouraged by the positive feedback we received from councillors and believe that they are as keen as we are to see the club develop and thrive. We are also pleased to confirm that the club has recently signed a new 75 year lease on the ground with the council.

We hope to start the renovation work on Brinkley as soon as planning permission has been granted. Full details of the plan will be made available on the Southwell City website once approved.

Memorial Ground
Adult football will move to Brinkley for the 2020/21 season. The Memorial Ground clubhouse and pitches will then be dedicated to junior football. We have plans to improve the facilities here too, once the Brinkley project is well underway. We are sure that the improvements we make here will benefit the whole of our local community, not just the football team.

Pitches & Training
Obviously we are all concerned and frustrated that we have lost so much football in February. We have considered if we could find alternative pitches to use but this is not really practical with so many teams to consider. It would also mean moving to 3G pitches which would involve travelling and a major cost to the club at a time when we need to save money for the future.

Luckily, the majority of our teams currently train on the All Weather Pitch at Minster School. We have only lost one session all winter, due to flash flooding on Nottingham Road. So, even when we can’t play at weekends we have at least had the consolation of being able to train.

We thank our all club members for their patience at this time. No doubt, the glut of midweek fixtures that many teams will face in the spring will make up for the games we have lost this winter!

The club’s three year development plan is an exciting one and we are sure that all of our players and parents will be pleased with the improvements we want to make. Come on City!!

Kind Regards

John Cunningham – Chairman
On behalf of the Southwell City Executive Committee

The FA have today announced updated heading guidance for all age groups between under 6 and Under 18.

The updated heading guidance, which will be introduced immediately, will provide grassroots clubs, coaches and players with the recommended heading guidance for training sessions only. The guidance does not make any changes to the way matches are played.

Follow this link for a PDF which explains the heading guidelines in full. The main headlines can be seen in the table below.

All Southwell City managers and coaches are requested that they make themselves familiar with the new rules ASAP so that the club is fully compliant with the new initiative.

If any manager has questions on this subject, please approach anybody on the exec committee for clarification.

Southwell City’s Junior Presentation Day will take place on Saturday the 16th of May at the Memorial Ground from 10.30am. The order for presentations will be sent out nearer the time.

This is a celebration of everything that is great about our club, so please save the date and we look forward to seeing players, coaches, volunteers and supporters.

JUNIOR TEAMS PRESENTATION DAY – SATURDAY 16th MAY 2020
10.30 A.M – 4 P.M

• Hot & Cold refreshments available all day Licensed Bar
• Recruitment Stall for new players
• Burgers, sweet stall, cake stall and soft drinks
• Fun events including bouncy castle, penalty shoot out, stocks
• Everybody Welcome

Southwell City Dynamos Under 13’s football team recently celebrated winning Division 7 of the Young Elizabethan League, going unbeaten throughout an increasingly wet and muddy Winter season.

After starting the season with a 5-1 win at home to Bulwell Athletic, the Dynamos finished the season with a 5-0 win on a muddy field at Loughborough Carillon. The Dynamos also scored 5 goals in wins over Toton Tigers and Breaston Park, drawing only one game, away to a well drilled Notts County girls team.

After the Dynamos collected their trophies from Nottingham Forest Under 23’s manager Chris Cohen, manager Dale Lancaster said “I’d like to thank the parents of all our players, new and old, for their support in our first season of 11 a-side football and look forward to new challenges in the Spring season, hopefully on drier pitches!”

Pictured:

Back row, L to R: Coach Dale Lancaster, Assistant Coach Matthew Wheatley, Chris Cohen (Nottingham Forest)

Second row: Fergus Keenan-Hill, Ollie Hullet, Ben Parkes, Jack Buckley, Edward Marshall, Ben Hazard,

Third row: Cameron Scott, Logan Dykes- Brierley, Alex Gardner, Jack Jarvis, Rhys Duncan, Luke Bowman,

Fourth row: Will Wheatley, Harry Cook, Sam Jarvis, Ted Smith, Tyler Lancaster.

 

Congratulations to Chris Barnes. He recently completed his FA Level 2 Coaching Award, alongside several other Southwell City football coaches. This takes the number of coaches that are qualified Level 2 or above into double figures, which is well above the average for most local grassroots football clubs.

Recently, Chris was lucky enough to be invited to attend a Match Day Masterclass at the home of the England football team, St George’s Park. His eldest daughter Hope, who plays for City U12 Girls, went along too.

The pair had a tour of the site including the Wembley replica pitch, the futsal stadium and the full-size indoor training facility. Former England & Arsenal captain, Tony Adams, was involved in sessions for coaches and children on the day.

Later, the invited coaches and players were put through their paces by an England UEFA A coach and then allowed to play a match on the indoor training pitch.

After the match, the coaches went through a full post-match hydrotherapy session with an FA physio which included a warm-down in the hydrotherapy pool, 6 rotations of the cold and hot plunge pools followed by the underwater treadmill

Chris picked up quite a few tips which we are hoping to see at his next Southwell City training sessions in 2020!

Southwell City is fully committed to providing football for children of all age groups, in a safe and supportive environment, enabling them to develop both on and off the field and to enjoy the game.

Coaching

Throughout all of our age groups we aim to increase each players ball skills as well as their team play and overall understanding of the game. For our very youngest players we offer mini-soccer, where we teach basic footballing skills. This works through the different ages, adding new skills and improving existing ones.

The club prides itself on its coaching staff. All our coaches have a minimum FA Level 1 coaching qualification, FA Safeguarding and first aid. As a club, all of of our coaches are volunteers and each season we need new ones, particularly for these younger age groups.

Under 6 Coach Required

Currently we do not have an Under 6’s team or any provision for younger players However we would like to be able to offer the very youngest boys and girls a chance to start playing football

Are you a parent with an interest in football? Would you like to become a coach, running a team for your son or daughter’s age group? If you are, we would like to hear from you!

The club encourages parents to become involved in the coaching and management of its teams. If you choose to take on this challenge, we will support you. We will appoint a coaching mentor from within the club to offer help and advice. We will pay for you to take the FA Level 1 course in football coaching too. You will also learn about emergency first aid and safeguarding. All coaches and assistants are required to undergo a full CRC check.

Be Part Of Your Football Club

If you can spare a few hours a week and wish to contribute to the future success of Southwell City FC, please contact club chairman, John Cunningham, using the enquiry form below.

Southwell City recently hosted a training course for aspiring football referees.

The club hosted the referee course as part of the Young Elizabethan League Referee Community Development programme, run in conjunction with Nottinghamshire FA.

Eighteen young footballers from around the county participated in the course and all candidates became qualified FA mini soccer referees at the end of it.

Five of the participants were from Southwell. This helps the club as it increases the number of referees available to officiate at the club’s annual summer tournament.

The newly qualified referees were quickly in action as they were invited to officiate at a local Under 7’s tournament just one week later. The competition allowed the lads to quickly get some proper match experience, taking charge of a number of games each.

As the competition ended, the Southwell referees were chosen to take charge of both semi-finals and both finals on the day, making it a memorable debut for all of our newly qualified officials.

Pictured: Tom Kessler, Matt Timms, Toby Short, Matt Cunningham