The last two weekends at Woburn have been a huge tribute to all those associated with WWFC. The Club has been receiving countless messages of praise and congratulations for delivering two exceptionally well run events that have obviously provided so much fun, excitement and drama for so many. The wonderful weather has played its part, but wow—the only thing hotter was the superb football on display ! However, the foundation of such a great festival of fun, friendship and football was the unprecedented levels of volunteer support throughout our great club. To everyone who helped organise parking, controlled traffic, put up signs, carried poles, pulled trolleys, sold raffle tickets, gave encouragement, sold water, emptied bins, sold programmes, organised, officiated, inputted data, etc etc, YOU played a massive part in delivering some remarkable results.
Overall, the Club achieved a record combined profit for both Weekends of nearly £19k, with record entry and attendance levels. This is an enormous achievement and particular thanks must go to Gary Towers and all the Tournament Committee for the superbly professional job they have done for all of us. As always, the tournament revenue is a massive contribution that will allow the Club to continue to invest heavily in grassroots football provision next season. In particular, we will be spending more than ever on Winter mid-week training provision and pro-coaching, kit and equipment, and investing in our playing facilities. Unlike most other grassroots football clubs, WWFC is responsible for groundcare at 5 of our 7 locations. We are part of the FA’s Pitch Improvement Programme which is already enabling us to invest wisely in improving our playing surfaces to the highest levels ever. In addition, the Club has been able to launch regular disability football sessions –Goalability, open our highly successful Lionesses Wildcats Girl’s Football Centre, and deliver regular Under 6 and Reception/Foundation years football sessions. All this and the Club continues to offer one of the most competitive membership fees around.
But obviously there are some huge footballing highlights from both Weekends too. The general standard of football was extremely high, but more importantly played in the right spirit. Huge thanks to the families of Zach Heath and Paul King who both attended presentations for the Under 9 Paul King Memorial Trophy and Under 14 Zach Heath Memorial Trophy. Also huge congratulations to our Ladies Lionesses Blues and Lions Under 10 Whirlwinds teams…. both became tournament cup winners on the last session of each tournament weekend– so naturally we’re very proud of both teams.
A comment from Pat Mancini, Coach to the winning Lionesses Ladies team:- “My team talk pre Tournament was all about managing expectations! And that I was looking forward to our new Ladies team getting to know each other on and off the field, so told them to relax, be composed and pass the ball and take one game at a time as only 12 mins. 10 Ladies did exactly that & got better & better with every game. They had never played together before. My last comment to them was that we should aim to win it next year when stronger. THEY PROVED ME WRONG ! Very proud as this was the 3rd time I have lead a LIONESSES team to win in our own Tournament whilst working at the event , 1st in U11s, 2nd in U13s, 3rd time Ladies!!! Unbelievable !”
A comment from Scott Russon, Manager of the Under 10 Whirlwinds:- “In the afternoon sunshine of the close of this year’s Woburn & Wavendon FC boys’ tournament, it was a pleasure to see our boys victorious in their age group, with a very slick performance that received praise and gracious compliments. During the 7-game winning-run of our fun-loving and well-established side, their performances were only surpassed by the excellent team spirit that was clear to see. The team are now already eagerly looking forward to the U11 season and the step-up to 9-aside football in September, not before enjoying the remainder of the World Cup.“
Seeing our Club at it’s best means so much to everyone. But of course it can never happen without the massive spirit of volunteering, support and friendship that exists within the Lions and Lionesses. It’s therefore an ideal time to issue an open invitation to anyone who would like to volunteer just a little more time for some vital Club roles. Specifically, we need individuals with good administration and communication abilities to help with kit allocation, sponsorship and pitch co-ordination. If you feel you could offer just a little bit of your time and expertise, we’d love to hear from you.
Please get in touch by emailing:- joinus@ww-fc.co.uk
