GUILLEM BALAGUE - Season will be remembered for the heroic effort of our volunteers

As we bid farewell to a truncated season we look forward with optimism to what next season will bring, wherever we may happen to end up playing.

We will of course fight tooth and nail to keep our place in the Spartan League not least because moving away from many of the friends we have built up over the years would be a severe wrench for everyone at the club.

But while we will certainly put our case forcefully at our appeal against the move, ultimately it is out of our control and something we will have to re-visit when any final decision is taken.

For the time being I prefer to focus on how we coped with the Covid crisis that affected everyone, including ourselves, and remember with no small amount of pride how we stepped up to the plate, as we put in place all the required ‘bells and whistles’ that enabled us to enjoy some kind of normalcy in a short, constantly interrupted and ultimately unfinished season that could never in anyone’s imagination be described as ‘normal’.

The creating of a socially distanced zone outside that allowed us to open our clubhouse albeit intermittently between lockdowns, the building of a tea and refreshments hut facility at the ground and the constant dealing with bureaucracy and funding bodies that guaranteed we always kept abreast of the frequently changing rules and regulations as well as the receipt of much needed funds that helped keep us afloat.

A season that will be forever remembered not so much for our exploits on the pitch but rather for the heroic achievements of our sterling band of volunteers off it. My gratitude knows no bounds.

We did of course manage to get some football played at our newly named Keech Hospice Care Stadium and I genuinely believe that had we been in a position to complete our fixture list our men’s first team had the talent to win the title and gain promotion this season.

Our ladies did however manage to win the mini-league organised after the lifting of lockdown which certainly bodes well for the future of ladies football at the club for which we have great plans including the creation of a second senior ladies side.

Our youth section, meanwhile, also worked hard to ensure that everything would be in place to ensure a smooth return to playing and most importantly we have kept the pot boiling by having regular zoom meetings with each other.

We need to keep the lines of communication open between all members of the different sides at the club and strive to continually build bridges between the youth and senior sections of the club.

We are constantly receiving applications from all manner of different people who want to join us and be part of our journey; we are travelling in the right direction, growing slowly but surely, and hopefully will continue to do so.

Why not come and join us?

Our clubhouse will be open for the European Championships initially for the England games on Sunday June 13 for the England v Croatia game where there will be a barbecue and also for the England v Scotland game on Friday June 18.