First Women’s Walking Football Competition Honours Pioneers

The very first women’s national walking football tournament is set to take place in Preston, Lancashire on Sunday 2nd July 2017 to commemorate 100 years of the Dick, Kerr Ladies.

In the history of women’s football, The Dick, Kerr Ladies are the most successful team in the world. They were formed at the Dick, Kerr & Co Ltd munitions factory in Preston, Lancashire during the First World War, these very ordinary factory girls from Preston quite literally took the country by storm.

On Christmas Day 1917, 10,000 spectators came to Deepdale, the home of Preston North End Football Club, to witness the start of the most phenomenal success story in the history of women’s sport. Dick, Kerr Ladies notched up the first of many famous victories whilst raising £600 for wounded soldiers.

On Boxing Day 1920, 53,000 spectators packed into Goodison Park, Everton, to see the Dick, Kerr Ladies take on St Helens Ladies, with another 14,000 people locked out and unable to gain admission to the ground. Another victory was recorded for the Dick, Kerr team and an incredible amount of £3,115 was raised for charity.

During the War the Government appointed women welfare supervisors and sent them into the factories to oversee the physical well-being of the factory girls and encourage the development of sporting activities. Among those activities was football, and football became the official sport of the munitions girls. Almost every factory across the United Kingdom involved in war work, had a ladies football team.

Incredibly, in 1921 the FA banned womens football, setting back the development of the womens game for decades. However, the Dick, Kerr ladies continued to play football around the world until 1965 leaving behind a glittering legacy.

For more on the story of the Dick, Kerr Ladies visit www.dickkerrladies.com

Tournament Details

The first national women’s walking football competition will be held in Preston on 2nd July 2017 to commemorate 100 years of the Dick, Kerr Ladies.

  • Teams of 6-A-Side Women (squad of up to 9 women players with flexi-substitutions)
  • Two age groups – Over 40’s and Over 50’s
  • Over 50’s Teams must consist of over 50’s Women (with two women players under 50 permitted, but with only one under 50 on the pitch at any time)
  • Over 40’s Teams must consist of over 40’s Women (with two women players under 40 permitted, but with only one under 40 on the pitch at any time)
  • National Tournament Official Rules and more information at www.walkingfootballunited.co.uk
  • Entry fee £30 per team – plus admin fee of £2.45 if booking online at www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/dick-kerr-ladies-cup-national-womens-walking-football-
  • tournament-tickets-28311050113
    Closing date for entries 30th April 2017.

For further information contact [email protected]

EFL Trust take action for #iwillWeek

The EFL Trust and its network of 72 member club trusts have joined hundreds of organisations to support #iwillWeek, a UK wide celebration highlighting the impact young people are making through social action.

STAYING ACTIVE WITH SOMETHING EXTRA AT PLYMOUTH

THE joy of being active and all the benefits it can bring is certainly not exclusive to the young. Plymouth Argyle Community Trust run a number of programmes that cater for people of all ages and abilities, helping their community to be active, be healthy and be happy.

The Extra Time sessions run every Monday with a dedicated group of Pilgrims aged over 55 who join us at Home Park for an afternoon of Kurling in the Tribute Lounge, which overlooks the hallowed pitch at PL2.

Roger Smith is 77 years-old and attends Extra Time with his wife Heather, enjoying the social side of gentle competition with their peers and using his beloved football club as a motivation to stay active.

“I’m a lifelong Argyle fan and I’ve enjoyed the pleasure of helping out on match-days at Home Park,” said Roger. “I played amateur football as a younger man and also managed teams in local leagues, so being active has been part of my life.

“My wife loves the Extra Time sessions as well and we both enjoy an afternoon here at the club. I’ve had a heart bypass operation in the past and that forces you to learn new things, explore different exercises and I’ve even invested in an exercise bike.

“It’s just nice to have a day out, spend time with people and also some friendly competition. It’s particularly special for me to attend a healthy programme at my hometown football club.”

For more information on Extra Time, please contact our health and disability officer Josh Grant on [email protected] or call 01752 562561 ext.4

1.1 MILLION PROJECT LAUNCHED FOR DISABILITY FOOTBALL

 EFL Trust and Wembley National Stadium Trust announce Every Player Counts project

Disability football in England has received a major boost following the announcement of Every Player Counts, a new £1.1m project from the EFL Trust that aims to attract almost 10,000 new participants into the sport. Read more

Fulham FC’s FanActiv Wins at Global Sport Award

Fulham FC Foundation’s innovative fan’s health programme, fanActive, has won  international recognition as winners of the Beyond Sport ‘Best New Innovation’ Award.

Last week Fulham FC Foundation and London United – the charitable arms of London’s professional football clubs – were recognised before an audience of global sport industry delegates for the programme which has had a massive impact on men’s health.

fanAcitv, is a men’s health programme that converts existing rivalries between football fans into healthy competition to get men moving more,. The programme was launched December 2015, in partnership with the NHS, Brentford Football Club Community Sports Trust and Tottenham Hotspur Foundation.

fanActiv is the ultimate clash of London football clubs as fans compete for bragging rights in a series of physical activity challenges, and through use of a digital platform encourage their rivals to keep up. Turning the inherent rivalry between football fans into healthy competition, the programme gets London males aged 35+ moving more through weekly physical activities, fan challenges in the community and health messaging at participating clubs’ grounds.

Backed by wearables giant Fitbit UK, the programme challenges fans to ‘walk, run, cycle their way to the top of the league table’. The pilot, delivered by Fulham FC Foundation, Brentford FC Community Sports Trust, and Tottenham Hotspur Foundation, produced life-changing results for participants. Among them were 244 kg total weight loss, an average of 16 hours per week reduction in sedentary behaviours, and a total BMI loss of 72.5 points.

  http://www.fulhamfc.com/fulham-fc-foundation/health-and-wellbeing/fanactiv

Footballers Say Yes to NCS

Professional footballers from the EFL have pledged their support for the National Citizen Service (NCS) by becoming ambassadors for the teenage personal and social development programme.The popular NCS programme is delivered by EFL clubs across the country, helping young people develop important skills whilst making an impact in their local communities. Sheffield Wednesday’s Liam Palmer and former Sky Bet Championship star George Friend have joined a host of footballers who have signed up to support the programme.

The National Citizen Service (NCS) is the country’s flagship youth programme, open to 16 and 17 year-olds across England and Northern Ireland with the aim to create a more cohesive, responsible and engaged society. It is a unique two or three week full-time programme focused around fun and discovery, and includes 30 hours committed to a community project that benefits both young people and society.EFL leading scorer and Scunthorpe United winger Josh Morris met NCS graduates who completed the programme at the Iron’s Glanford Park home. The former England U20 international was quizzed by the Scunthorpe United’s Community Trust’s graduates about his pathway into football, his career so far and his fantastic start to life at Scunthorpe United. The roles were then switched and Josh had his own questions lined up for the graduates, finding out what they have learnt and gained from enrolling as an NCS student.To say “yes” to NCS or to find out more visit www.ncsefltrust.co.uk.

Speaking proudly about his role as Scunthorpe United’s NCS Ambassador, Josh said: “I’m delighted and proud to be chosen as NCS Ambassador. NCS is brilliant. It gives young people the chance to experience a variety of challenges while building new friendships and benefitting the local community. I’m looking forward to getting involved in NCS and meeting the young people on the programme.”

Scunthorpe United’s NCS graduate Ryan Jones said: “NCS has opened up various options that I wasn’t aware of before joining the programme. We have participated in a whole range of different activities and I would encourage any 15-17 year old to consider saying yes to NCS.

“Josh is a brilliant figure to have as Scunthorpe United’s NCS Ambassador. We all asked Josh a few questions about his career and he took a keen interest in how NCS has played a positive part in our lives.”

The EFL’s Trust Programme Manager Dominik Stingas-Paczko added: “The support we get from football clubs and players is fantastic. Our relationship with football clubs allows us to reach a larger audience.

“It’s always great when you see players interacting with young people on the programme. It would be great in years to come to see a professional football player who is an NCS graduate.”

Using the power of football, NCS EFL Trust are in a unique position to publicise the work that NCS are doing during the programme and after. Last year, the social media campaign #NCSMatchDay reached over one million people. The EFL Trust have been delivering the NCS programme since its pilot year in 2011 and now have a network of over 20,000 graduates.

The NCS programme offers a unique opportunity for 16-17 year olds and costs just £50. The programme takes place three times a year in the spring, summer and autumn holidays and 275,000 young people have participated in the programme since it began in 2011. To sign up today or for more information, please visit www.ncsefltrust.co.uk.

2016 NCS player ambassadors:

Barnsley – Marc Roberts
Doncaster Rovers – Niall Mason and Joe Pugh
Rotherham United – Lee Frecklington
Sheffield United – George Long
Sheffield Wednesday – Liam Palmer
Grimsby Town – Shaun Pearson
Scunthorpe United – Josh Morris
Hartlepool United – Padraig Amond
Middlesbrough – George Friend
Accrington Stanley – Nathan Webb
Blackpool – Clark Robertson
Blackburn Rovers – Hope Akpan
Preston North End – Chris Maxwell
Fleetwood Town – David Ball
Burnley – Sam Vokes
Carlisle United – Michael Raynes
Shrewsbury Town – Gary Deegan
Portsmouth – Jack Whatmough