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Hot off the press (see it here before it hits the wire, or after (in case you
missed it)....)
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March 10
Keyworth United retains FA Charter Standard Community Club Status
We're
delighted to announce that Keyworth United has again been awarded FA Charter Standard Community Club status - the highest
level of award achievable by an amateur club. Already holders of this coveted award, we are required to submit a renewal application
every three years in order to meet the increasingly stringent standard. Our recent application has now been approved by the
FA, ensuring that we continue to hold the award for another three years. The detailed assessment process examines the standing
of the club, our standards and disciplinary record, the strength and application of our policies and procedures; compliance
with first aid and safeguarding children requirements; the quality of coaching and our links with the community. We are incredibly
proud to retain this award which recognises our commitment to quality and endorses the efforts of all involved with the club.
Equally, the award reflects the extent to which we engage with the local community and our core values which place community
at the heart of all that we do. Our continued Charter Standard Community Club status is the foundation stone which underpins
all of our activities from the clubhouse development through to our five year Football Development Plan - its importance to
the club cannot be understated! Congratulations to all and special thanks to Roy Reed who has done such a sterling job in
driving us through to success. Staying with the community
focus, as a result of our Christmas charity football match with BGS Veterans, we recently presented local resident Dave Huscroft
with a cheque for £1,001 towards his chosen charity, Macmillan Nurses. Many thanks to all who have supported us in this
and our other fund-raising activities which have raised over £10, 000 for various charities over the past few years.
See home page (bottom left) for a photo of the official "handover" of the cheque. Anyone travelling along Platt Lane can't fail to have noticed that work on the new clubhouse has now started.
Whilst this is a major milestone in our development, we also recognise that it is likely to cause some short term disruption.
With car parking spaces at the ground now reduced to a minimum, the number of cars parking along Platt Lane is likely to increase
on Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings until the end of the season in April. We apologise for any inconvenience that this
may cause, however it really is a case of short-term pain for long-term gain as additional parking at the ground should reduce
parking problems along Platt Lane once the building work is completed in late summer.
Last, but by no means least,
congratulations to the Under 9 Blacks; Under 9 Greens and Under 10 Blacks who have made it through to the Semi Finals of the
Young Elizabethan League Cup and the Under 12 Greens who have reached the last four of the FA Shield County Cup competition.
We wish them well and hope to be reporting on some Keyworth finalists in the next issue!
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February 10
Charity match nets £1,000 for Macmillan Nurses
Wintery conditions might have devastated
recent league and cup fixtures, but one fixture which did beat the elements was the annual "local derby" charity
match between the Veterans teams (over 35s) of Keyworth United and BGS. On a bitterly cold day, with local bragging rights
up for grabs, both sides put in competitive performances, providing an entertaining contest for a decent sized crowd. BGS
twice took the lead through Phil Marley and Craig Hudson but were pegged back by a Carl Fox effort and a late equaliser from
Bobby Oldham, before referee Councillor John Cottee, brought the match to an end, ensuring honours remained even for another
year. Funds raised from the match, subsequent activities at Keyworth Tavern and the exploits of a few die-hard Keyworth United
golfers on New Years Day, generated just over £1,000 for our chosen charity, Macmillan Nurses - a fantastic effort!
Many thanks to all involved. It's not just the weather that's
created fixture chaos; we're also victims of our own success! Cup matches take priority, so with teams in each of the
age groups from Under 10 - Under 14 reaching the Quarter Finals of the FA Shield competition and some also Quarter Finalists
in their respective league cup competitions, the fixture backlog is really building up...at this rate we'll still be playing
in June! Things are progressing with the new clubhouse. After getting
the verbal "nod" in November, we've now received official written confirmation of funding from the Football
Foundation. The new building, which will house six team changing rooms, two officials changing rooms with en-suite facilities;
male, female and wheelchair accessible toilets, a club room and a kitchen with external servery, should be open for the start
next season. We've also welcomed Helen and Ali into the club, taking
over the running of the Platt Lane food bar. Why not pop in on a Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning and sample the excellent
fare on offer. While you're there, you could buy a ticket for our Race Night on 26th February. For more details, along
with news of our teams and all our activities, visit the Keyworth United website: www.kucfc.com. There's even a free competition to win a signed copy of Graham Joyce's highly entertaining book "Simple Goalkeeping
Made Spectacular", personally donated by the Leicester based author. Short-listed for the William Hill Sports Book of
the Year award, it's well worth a read, so get online and get your entry in now!
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January 10
Exciting Year Ahead for Keyworth United! As it's
traditional at this time of year to look back at the old and welcome the new, let's engage in a spot of nostalgia and
crystal ball gazing! Wow - what a year it's been!...the Reserves' cup final appearance; league and cup success for
the Under 10s; the Under 13s tour to Feignes; the Under 16s "international" against the Australians; relocation
of the First team pitch; a highly enjoyable Soccer Fun Day; superbly resurrecting the village Chariot Race; our usual participation
in the Keyworth Show; the live BBC TV broadcast; an interview on Radio Nottingham; the hugely successful Shoeboxes for Afghanistan
campaign; numerous excellent social events; the launch of our World Cup Competition and last, but not least, success with
our funding bid for the new clubhouse. It's been a busy time and there's still more to come with our annual charity
match between the Vets and BGS Vets on Sunday 27th December (noon kick off). With proceeds going to Macmillan Nurses, we're
hoping for a good crowd. We enter the New Year full of optimism. Although
the First team hover just above the drop zone, the Reserves and Vets are both well placed for a promotion challenge, while
sides at Under 16; Under 13; Under 10 and Under 9 are all in contention for honours and we have a number of teams through
to cup quarter finals. We're planning an even bigger and better Chariot Race on 5th June and with work expected to start
on the new clubhouse in the early New Year and completion due by the start of next season, plans are already afoot for a high
profile opening launch. Add to that all the interest around our brilliant World Cup Prediction Competition and Mystic Malc
foresees an exciting year ahead. So why not make it a New Year resolution to pop down to Platt Lane and to enter our World
Cup Competition (www.worldcupcompetition.co.uk)? Finally, we couldn't end without mentioning Alan and Jenny Wilkins,
who have become a bit of an institution at the club over numerous years, providing a welcome as warm as the food they've
served up in Oscar's Food Bar! Alan and Jenny decided to hang up their oven gloves at Christmas in order to do something
different on winter weekends...like enjoy themselves and take well earned holidays! On behalf of the club and many hungry
/ thirsty footballers and spectators: Thank you and very best wishes for the future! Happy New Year!
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December 09
All Systems Go for New Clubhouse! After
several years, a lot of hard work and considerable hair loss, we've finally had the news we've all been waiting for!
We're absolutely delighted to announce that on 11th November 2009, the Football Foundation approved our bid for over £300,000
- the outstanding piece in the funding jigsaw for our new clubhouse. With all the funding in place we are now in a position
to go ahead with the new building. This is fantastic news, not just for the football club but for the whole community! Not
only will the club have a new clubhouse with modern changing rooms, function room, etc, which will provide the stimulus for
our football development plan (which, amongst other things, will see a growth in the number of teams and the establishment
of a disabled section), the wider, non-footballing, community of Keyworth will benefit from a new facility which will be available
for general hire. The other contributors in an overall funding package
totalling up to £765,000 include Biffa; Wren; Notts County Council; Rushcliffe Borough Council; East Midlands Airport;
Keyworth Parish Council; Sport England Community Sport Fund and, of course, the football club itself. We are incredibly grateful
to all our funding partners and to Notts FA for their support in turning the dream into reality. Work on the new building
will commence in December, with completion expected in summer 2010. We'll keep you informed of progress through these
pages and on our website www.kucfc.com. Back on the pitch, congratulations
to the miserly Reserves who equalled a Notts Senior League record for consecutive clean sheets in a run of five games without
concession. Meanwhile both the Under 9 Blacks and the Under 10 Green teams remain unbeaten in the league at the time of writing. Finally, as part of our fundraising efforts, we'll be launching our World Cup Prediction
Competition on 5th December following the previous day's World Cup draw. The competition will be open for entries until
the start of the World Cup next summer. We've some great prizes on offer and are hoping to attract a large number of entrants.
For further details and the opportunity to enter online, check out the competition website: www.worldcupcompetition.co.uk. It's great fun - tell your friends!
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November 09
Keyworth United Live on TV!
It's been an exciting few weeks for Keyworth United! On 8th October, we made
our first live television appearance when the BBC came to Platt Lane to run an article featuring Bobby Oldham's Under
14s team. A co-owner of Clean as a Whistle - the team's sponsor - whose son is serving with the Grenadier Guards, recently
started a campaign to send shoeboxes containing the little luxuries which we all take for granted,(soap, toothbrushes, etc)
to brighten up the lives of our troops in Afghanistan. Happy to assist, we've adopted the regiment and, through the generosity
of players, parents and officials, filled a substantial number of shoeboxes for dispatch to the troops. BBC captured the event
with a live link into the East Midlands Today bulletin, which also featured pre-recorded interviews with some of the Under
14 boys during their weekly training session. We are proud to have particiatcd in this excellent event which epitomised the
community ethos that goes into making us a recognised Community Football Club. The bid for the new clubhouse has now been signed off by Notts FA and submitted to the Football Foundation for consideration
at a meeting in November. Many thanks to all of those, including Notts FA officials, who have worked tirelessly in developing
the bid - we now wait with fingers crossed for the decision. On the pitch, we're honoured to have successfully hosted
an Under 16 New South Wales representative side, who included Keyworth United within their UK tour schedule, which also featured
games with Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest! While our senior sides have experienced mixed fortunes over recent weeks,
the Under 9 Blacks and the Under 10 Greens continue to show our other teams how to do it, with superb unbeaten starts to the
season - keep it up boys! Last, but not least, we're holding a race
night on 27th November and watch out for the launch of our World Cup Competition! More on that in the December issue and on
our new website www.kucfc.com
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October 09
Mixed
Start for Keyworth teams At senior level, the new season
couldn't have started any worse for Keyworth's 1st team, who slumped to a 6-0 defeat at Clifton in their opening fixture.
Since then though, the boys in green have bounced back in style and with impressive victories on the road at Magdala, Ruddington
and Linby, along with a creditable point in the local derby at Cotgrave, things are looking much brighter. At the time of
writing we've reached the dizzy heights of 4th in the top flight of Notts Senior League. Well done to Dave Fisk and his
team, long may it continue! In contrast, it's been a reversal of
fortune for the Reserves. Having splendidly overturned a three goal deficit at Calverton to record an amazing 4-3 victory
on the opening day, the Reserves produced another comeback three days later at Radclffe to secure all three points. It wasn't
to last though, as depleted by first team call ups and limited availability, the "Ressies" crashed to successive
heavy defeats and currently occupy a position of mid-tale respectably. Off
the pitch, things have been increasingly hectic as we put the final touches on the clubhouse funding bid and embark on the
process of renewing our FA Charter Standard status. Recent meetings with officials from Nottinghamshire FA and the Football
Foundation have been very positive and we're quietly optimistic that both applications will prove successful. Watch this
space for regular updates on progress. After our successful excursion
into Europe last season, when the Under 13 boys visited Feignes in France, we're delighted to announce that our reputation
has spread further across the international arena. Following an approach from our antipodean friends, we'll be hosting
a visiting team from New South Wales, Australia in the (Down) Under 16 age group on 24th October.
Finally, a word
of thanks to Dave Voce - our long-suffering Club Secretary. This time of year is a nightmare for Dave, who has to co-ordinate
fixtures, pitch allocations and player registrations for over twenty teams, all within specific deadlines. It's a mammoth
and thankless task, but without Dave's efforts, no-one would be playing football for the club. From all of the coaches
/ managers; players and parents of our junior players...THANK YOU!
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September 09
Back to Business!
Despite the lack of football, it's been a busy summer at Platt Lane. With the
highly successful Chariot Race, nineteen end of season presentation events and reworking of the bid for the new clubhouse,
it feels like we've never been away! Now though, as the close season itself draws to a close, its football that is once
again the focus of our attention as we embark on the new campaign full of hope and expectation for the season ahead. With demand as high as ever, this year we'll be running 23 teams, plus our ever popular
Sunday morning Soccer School for 5-7 year olds. The 1st team kicked off our season away in mid August but have to wait until
12th September for their first home match. Junior and youth teams also get underway on the weekend of 12/13 September. We wish all of our teams the best of luck for the new season - particularly the new coaches,
tentatively taking up the reins for the first time. We'd also like to thank those coaches who stepped down at the end
of last season and Andrew Leatherland who, after several years at the keyboard, is relinquishing his role as Press Officer.
Well done guys, from all at Keyworth United, many thanks for your sterling service over the years! Through these pages we'll keep you updated on the progress of all our teams over the coming months and hope to
have some news on the new clubhouse shortly. In the meantime, if you'd like to find out more, check out the Keyworth United
website at www.keyworthunited.co.uk. Better still, why not pop down to Platt Lane on a Saturday afternoon or Sunday morning
to see for yourself, take in a game and sample the delights of Alan and Jenny's "Oscar's " food bar? We
look forward to seeing you!
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January 15th 2010 - Nottingham Evening
Post
A VILLAGE is celebrating after winning a nine-year campaign
for new £600,000 football changing rooms. Since
2001 Keyworth United has battled to raise around £90,000 to unlock more than £510,000 from the Football Foundation. The club, based at Platt Lane, has organised chariot races, golfing days, race nights and
more to get the cash to replace its old wooden clubhouse. Yesterday the
Football Foundation announced it would fund the scheme - and construction should start within two weeks. Father-of-two Robert Clegg, 45, from Keyworth, the club chairman for nine years, said: "We
have done it! We have finally got there. I am so relieved after such a long time.
"It is going to make a tremendous difference. People don't like to come down there because of the facilities.
But now, because of the improvements, we will attract more." Campaigners
say the club, which has 27 teams, had to wait a long time for the money because the village is a wealthy area. The Football Foundation previously promised £345,000 but the application had to be
resubmitted because of cost increases. The club says this was due to changes the foundation wanted to the design, plus inflation. John Cottee, county councillor for Keyworth, said: "I am absolutely thrilled for the
community. We have been having problems because Keyworth is seen as a wealthy area. But the sports facilities are in a pretty
poor state. "This will now give us decent facilities for our own
teams and visitors. It is going to be a pleasure for kids to go down there." The new brick building will have six changing rooms and two separate rooms for referees and linesmen, as well as
a function room, kitchen, toilets for spectators ,and a bigger car park. Under-13s'
manager Malcolm Healey, 46, who has been involved with the club for six years, said: "We have been working towards this
since 2001. It has been a long, long time coming. We are absolutely delighted with what's going to happen. We will be
getting new people come into the club. "We will be looking into holding
coaching courses and working with disabled people. It will be a lot more modern. We are absolutely thrilled to bits." The club recently had £180,000 spent improving the pitches with better drainage. The £514,000 grant from the Football Foundation, a body run by the football authorities
and the Government, is part of a £765,000 package with contributions from Biffa, Wren; Notts County Council, Rushcliffe
Borough Council, East Midlands Airport, Keyworth Parish Council and Sport England Community Sport Fund. Paul Thorogood, chief executive of the Football Foundation, said: "We warmly congratulate
Keyworth United Community FC and the Nottinghamshire County FA for their hard work and dedication in securing this award." chris.birkle@nottinghameveningpost.co.uk
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Timing: Immediate release (14 Jan 10) Keyworth
United Clubhouse gets Green Light! Keyworth United Community
Football Club is to benefit from a new clubhouse thanks to a grant of up to £514,460 from the Football Foundation. A delighted club President, Allan Cook said: "This is fantastic news for the football
club and the whole community of Keyworth. Not only will it kick start our football development plan, which will see us running
more teams, it will provide a new facility for people of Keyworth to use. We are extremely grateful to the Football Foundation
and all our funding partners, for helping turn our dream into reality." Funded
by the Premier League, The Football Association and Government, the Football Foundation is the country's largest sports
charity with a £40m budget going straight into the heart of football. Keyworth United Community FC was previously awarded
two grants worth £800 towards new football strips and equipment through the Foundation's Junior Kit Scheme. Keyworth United Community Football Club is a FA Charter Standard Community Club and one of
the oldest and largest football Clubs in Nottinghamshire, having celebrated its centenary in 2004. The project will provide a new pavilion to service the club's existing Foundation funded pitches. The new changing
facilities are desperately needed in order to meet the demand from existing teams and to accommodate new girls and boys teams.
The new building will house six team changing rooms with toilets and showers and two officials changing rooms with en-suite
facilities. The social side of the building will see separate, male, female and wheelchair accessible toilets, along with
a large club room and kitchen with external servery. Paul Thorogood,
Chief Executive of the Football Foundation said: "We warmly congratulate Keyworth United Community FC and the Nottinghamshire
County FA for their hard work and dedication in securing this award." "Sport
is playing a central role in helping people to stay fit, strengthen communities and promote responsibility amongst young people.
This new project in Nottinghamshire is but one example of thousands across the country that the Football Foundation is supporting
with money provided by our funding partners - the Premier League, The FA and Government." The grant is part of an overall funding package totaling up to £765,000, with other contributions coming from
Biffa; Wren; Notts County Council; Rushcliffe Borough Council; East Midlands Airport; Keyworth Parish Council and Sport England
Community Sport Fund. Work on the new building will start later this month and is expected to be completed by the start of
next season.
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Timing: Immediate release (14 Jan 10) Keyworth
Charity match nets £1,000 for Macmillan Nurses The annual
Veterans (over 35s) charity football match between local rivals Keyworth United and British Geological Survey ended with honours
even but the Macmillan Nurses a clear winner. A tight game, superbly officiated
by Keyworth councillor John Cottee, saw BGS twice take the lead, only to be pegged back by Bobby Oldham's late equaliser.
Subsequent activities at the Keyworth Tavern public house and the New Year's Day exploits of a few die-hard Keyworth United
golfers pushed the total raised for the chosen charity to just over £1,000. Keyworth United Vice-Chairman Paul Costall said: "This has been a tremendous effort from all involved. The Macmillan
Nurses do a fantastic job and we're delighted to support such a worthy cause."
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PRESS RELEASE: Timing: Immediate release (30Oct 09)
Keyworth United Shoebox Campaign tops
200 Keyworth United's efforts
to help brighten up the lives of soldiers serving in Afghanistan has proved more successful than anticipated. The club has been filling shoeboxes with the little luxuries that we all take for granted,
such as soap, toothpaste and magazines, for dispatch to the troops. Originally setting themselves an optimistic target of
filling fifty shoeboxes by the end of October, the club is astounded to have now sealed a massive 210 boxes. These will be
taken to the Army Recruitment Office in Nottingham later this week and dispatched to the troops from there. Manager of the Under 14s team and the club's co-ordinator of the shoebox campaign, Bobby
Oldham said "this is a tremendous achievement and far exceeds our expectations. The generosity of all involved has been
amazing and is greatly appreciated. I'm sure the soldiers will get great comfort from the boxes and this will give them
a big lift". If anyone still wishes to still donate, Keyworth United
will arrange to send over any additional items after the first batch has been dispatched. Details of approved items are available
on the Keyworth United website at: www.kucfc.com/support_troops.html Anyone wishing to donate can contact Bobby Oldham on 07920 515
785 or at: u14blacks@kucfc.com
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PRESS RELEASE: Timing: Immediate release (25 Oct 09)
Honours Even in Keyworth International
A typically highly charged encounter between England and Australia ended with honours even as Keyworth United Under 16s
took on a representative side from the Far North Coast of New South Wales.
In a pulsating game, Keyworth took the lead
from Matt Milnes' spot-kick midway through the first half after Man of the Match Greg Halford was pulled down in the area.
Undeterred, the Aussies fought back and were rewarded with a deserved equalizer with twenty minutes remaining. Keyworth United Under16s Manager
Jim Manton said “this was a great day for Keyworth - a superb game which was a tremendous advert for youth football.”
Managed by former Nottingham resident John Sowter, the Australians now continue their tour with trips to Hucknall Rolls-Royce,
Priory Celtic and Pelican before heading north to face Newcastle United and Aberdeen.
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PRESS RELEASE: Timing:
Immediate release (20 Oct 09)
KEYWORTH TAKE ON AN
AUSSIE XI
The mere mention of an England vs Australia clash conjures up
competitiveness, tension and a will to win.
This Saturday (October 24th) will
see this tradition maintained when Keyworth United Under 16s take on a representative side from Northern New South Wales at
Platt Lane in Keyworth.
It may not be an Ashes clash or a Rugby battle, but
taking on the old enemy at any sport gives the game that bit of edge.
The
Northern New South Wales XI is coached by former Nottingham resident John Sowter, and the Keyworth fixture is one of eleven
the team will play during the UK tour.
Other teams being lined up include
Nottingham Forest, Newcastle United and Aberdeen as well as local sides Hucknall, Arnold Town and Priory Celtic.
Keyworth United's Under 16s manager Jim Manton said: "As a Community Club we're
delighted to welcome the Australians to Keyworth for such a prestigious fixture - we can certainly bill this as our first
international at Platt Lane."
Notts Youth League has allowed Keyworth
to postpone their scheduled fixture in order to accommodate the touring side. Kick
off at Platt Lane is 10am. |
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