Latest Junior Newsletter
To all Junior Members & parents etc
Hello to everyone, and a special welcome to all the new members.
The league is underway, and our first home game was on Tuesday 17th August against Lancaster City. That was followed on Saturday 21st August with one of the biggest home games of the season against South Shields with a 3pm kick-off. They apparently have a superb team again this season, and are favourites to win the league, with all their players being full time professionals .
Although I didn’t go to Gainsborough last Saturday, I’ve seen the highlights, and spoken to folk who did go, and we apparently played OK, and perhaps could have grabbed all three points, but a 1-1 draw is satisfactory away from home.
Unfortunately, the home game against Lancaster was a different story. The first half we were second best all 45 minutes, with some tragic errors, and in some respect could have been more than 2-0 down at half time. The management must have had some serious words during the break, and in fairness, Witton played better in the second half, and scored two excellent goals, but we were still on the losing side, and over the 90 minutes, probably 2-3 was a fair result.
For the South Shields game, where in fairness Witton played much better than Tuesday. Unfortunately it wasn’t quite good enough and we lost 1-0. We do have a large injury list, and we are struggling with strikers particularly. We don’t seem to have that cutting edge to score goals, but with players returning from injury, and hopefully some recruitment, I’m sure we will recover and start winning matches again.
Regrettably, we lost again on Tuesday night to Radcliffe Borough 0-2. I didn’t go, but according to reports, we were below par. Not a great start to the season, having got 1 point from a possible 12, but it’s now time to get behind the team, encourage them rather than criticise, not turn our backs on them like a few have. We are plagued with injuries, particularly on the attacking front, so things will improve. Our management team are also in the market for new players, and Carl & Gary have vast experience on this and will deliver sometime in the near future. Please keep your faith, we will come good in the end.
Often, we’ve had between 60 and 100 of you turning up on Saturday match day to support the Albs, and it would be fantastic to reach those numbers again, and even better if we improve on them. You have a free card, so please use it as often as possible. Regularly we had whole teams turning up with their managers/coaches, and creating a superb atmosphere particularly behind the goal, with all the Witton songs being sung at full volume. Let’s get that back again PLEASE.
An ideal time to show your support is tomorrow (Bank Holiday Monday) against Nantwich. We really do need all the help we can get to get back to our normal standards. Please turn up in big numbers to shout and sing our team home to victory.
Before, and even during the game, don’t forget to use the snack bar for cold drinks, chocolate, crisps etc and Queenies for hot food and drink. Witton’s shop is next to the turnstiles, where you can buy Witton merchandise at a discounted price by showing your Junior Membership Card. Also match programmes are sold in the shop.
Ballboys/girls and mascots. Talk to your manager/coach if you would like your team to be ballboys/ girls at a match. It’s very easy to organise, just by letting me know when, how many, etc. You get to meet the team managers and players before the game, walk out with the teams, hear your team announced over the tannoy, pictures taken by our club photographer, a mention in the match programme and a free meal at the end of the game. As a mascot, you get all the same benefits, so get your family along to support you on your special day at Witton Albion. We already have had Brookvale under 14’s booked in as ballboys for the match against South Shields, plus a mascot from Witton Juniors, so don’t waste time, get your bookings in. Don’t forget IT’S FREE, and I know Premiership teams charge Hundreds of £’s just to be a mascot, and don’t get the same treatment as Witton give.
Elite Coaching – Witton are currently running elite coaching sessions every Saturday morning, run by fully qualified professional coaches. Currently we are concentrating on goalkeepers, younger ones at 9am, followed by older ones at 10am. The cost is £25 per hour per person, and is receiving high praise from both parents and kids alike, so if you’re interested, please ring John on 07808 632540. There will be other coaching for outfield players at a later date.
I’ve mentioned this in the past, but to run a football club like Witton, we do not have multi- millionaires in charge, companies who sponsor us for massive amounts of money etc. Instead, we have an army of volunteers, who work their socks off 52 weeks a year, mainly behind the scenes, which often you won’t even see the difference they make, but believe me, it’s enormous, and Witton 100% would not even exist if all these volunteers packed in their jobs.
The sad thing is that like me, most of these volunteers are politely “mature”, but more to the point what you younger ones might call “coffin dodgers”. In 10 years or less in some cases, a few of us will be “unavailable”, and unless we are gradually replaced or assisted by younger versions, this fantastic club will cease to exist – that is a brutal assessment, but unfortunately truthful.
What we need are more volunteers. There are so many areas where people can help – maintenance, repairs, groundsmen, administration, and many more tasks. In terms of hours worked, that will be down to the individual, whether it’s a steward on match day, or responsibilities during the week. Literally everyone has skills of some sort, and we need a broad range of different skills. Please ask your parents, or other relatives if they can afford the time to help, it’s so important.
99% of the time, we all work together, and act like a family in the best interest of the club, but occasionally when there are disagreements, it’s actually a good thing, because everybody is so keen on doing the right thing, and are passionate about their beliefs. Please do ask around if anyone wants to become a volunteer in any capacity.
That’s all for now, so please try to get to the home games as often as possible, it’s so important.Thanks, take care, and see you soon.
Kind regards,
Alan Jackson
Witton Albion Football Club