Southwell City 
The club has been devastated by the recent passing of Ged Law. Ged was not only our 1st team secretary, he was the father of Calum, and a person who was highly regarded throughout the club. An absolute gentleman who’ll be thoroughly missed.
The statement below, made by Jonny Upton, our first team manager, reflects how we all feel at the club.
The redevelopment of the Southwell City football clubhouse at Brinkley has been making great progress, despite these difficult times. It is hoped that the building will be open for use by Spring 2021.
Southwell architect Joseph Kemish came up with the design for the new building and the builder carrying out the work is Chris Davies, who is also based locally. Both have been working closely with Jonny Upton and Rich Wilson from the football club.
City Chairman John Cunningham said “Joe and Chris have been so important throughout this whole project. Joe came up with a fantastic design and Chris and his team have been fundamental in delivering his idea. We are confident that the new clubhouse will be a great asset to the football club and the local community. It will also be a great advert for these two local businesses that have been so generous in their support of their local football team. We are all looking forward to it opening in 2021”
To speak to Joe or Chris about any local building project, please contact Joseph Kemish (01636 816972) or Chris Davies (07914 402113) and they will be pleased to assist.
Southwell City are pleased to announce a new partnership with Canoville Coaching, which is run by ex-Arsenal and Notts County footballer, Lee Canoville.
Lee is a familiar figure locally and his coaching camps have become a popular attraction for young footballers in the area. Initially Lee, and his team of coaches will be working with young boys and girls who are just starting to learn how to play football.
City chairman, John Cunningham said “We are so pleased to be able to involve Lee in our coaching set-up. Lee has a fantastic reputation for developing young players and I’m really excited with what he can bring to our football club. We are looking forward to working with him.”
Canoville Coaching will be running one-hour training sessions each Saturday morning at the Memorial Ground in Southwell from 9.30am. Initially, these will be open to children in school years 1 and 2. Each session costs £5 and space are limited so pre-booking is a must. Please visit www.southwellcity.com to check availability and to register online.
Last night some mindless individuals decided to race cars over our junior pitches on Church Street. They have caused serious damage and the 7-a-side pitches will be out of action for some time. Southwell Town Council are aware and are talking to the police.
The club is now looking at alternative arrangements so that the 7v7 matches can continue to be played with the minimum of disruption. Team managers will be in touch with parents/carers to discuss arrangement for specific matches that were due to be played this weekend.
Thank you for your understanding.
John
Chairman, Southwell City FC
John Cunningham, newly elected chair of Southwell City Football Club discusses with Richard Miller, the role of Welfare Officer within the club.
John – Let’s start at the beginning, what does a Welfare officer do?
Richard – The work is perhaps in two camps. 1) keeping the issue of player welfare high on the agenda of managers, parents and the executive committee 2) dealing with and supporting situations when thing have perhaps gone wrong or differing views exist.
John – Can you expand on keeping welfare high on the agenda?
Richard – in its simplest form it is ensuring we consider welfare on each manager meeting, in our club handbook and at the executive committee. Perhaps explained differently it is about raising the profile of the club’s ethos, speaking to managers or parents, but making sure we always consider the experience of the player.
Each team is different. Different people, different players, sometimes different goals and we have to react to those. In reality the club if offering fun, exercise and great team building skills to young people in Southwell and the local villages, we must always keep that in mind.
In practical terms we work with managers to ensure things like qualifications are right and they feel supported.
John – Qualifications; I might know what that involves but how would you explain it to someone new?
Richard – There are 4 elements to the qualifications. Child Welfare, CRC checks (also know as DBS), 1st Aid and coaching badges. All are important. We want the checks done to give confidence to parents, carers and the club but 1st aid and coaching are as important.
When and hopefully not too regularly a manager has to deploy their 1st aid skills we hope it means they feel confident; the player feels supported. However, it could be a more serious issue with a player, supporter or referee. We have de-fib machines at both our grounds and while not used as far as I recall, I know they have been on the pitch under advice of emergency services, this is welfare – keeping people safe to the best of our abilities.
If I considered qualifications, it is about the professional way a manager approaches their training and match day sessions. These qualifications are a commitment by the volunteer managers in terms of time to pass and this is an important aspect of the club. Managers should be supported, informed and given the resources to deliver great experiences for players. We have an FA mentor who works with us and supports coaches when he can.
John – lots of points there, the role, the expectations and the qualifications, what else does welfare consider?
Richard – we are currently planning development at both club houses and making sure they are fit for the future is part of that. The environment must give people to have the best experience we can offer. I might also suggest referees as a part of welfare.
As a club we support what are often young people to enjoy referring and cover the costs of the course. We also have to make sure we create the environment for them to flourish, to learn as that is what they are often doing. It’s great we have so many local people who referee, we can of course always do with more!
John – any closing views
Richard – The role is much wider than people often think. The main objective is preventing disagreements, supporting people and giving great player, parent, carer and official experiences. That is only delivered thought the great volunteer coaches we have.
John – we could go on more but an interesting insight to a role which some might have viewed as dealing with just the problems. Good luck this year, the club’s development is exciting, and I look forward to presenting an even better experience for players, parents, carers, officials as the club continues to develop.
Southwell City Football Club with shortly have seven new FA Level 2 coaches as the club continues in its objective of offering the highest level of coaching to all players within the club.
At present, grassroots football teams are only required to use coaches with a minimum FA Level 1 coaching qualification. Last year, the club took the decision to try and raise the standard at Southwell City, with the aim of offering the highest quality coaching possible.
Seven coaches are expected to complete their FA Level 2 qualification in Spring 2019. They are Alastair Baird, Chris Barnes, John Cunningham, Jonny Upton, Mitch Annable, Paul Muckle and Richard Miller. These coaches are involved in boys, girls and adult football at the club. Going forward, the club will be asking any new coaches to also consider studying for this higher qualification.
The Level 2 course is taken in three blocks and part of the process involves coaches being observed by the FA at training sessions and on match days.
City’s Vice Chair, John Cunningham, said “We have some great people, who are giving up many hours of their own time to try and be better football coaches, for the benefit of players of all ages at Southwell City. Rich Wilson must be thanked for his vision and for working closely with Steve Thompson from the FA to deliver a bespoke course for this group of dedicated, volunteer coaches.”
Pictured L to R: Steve Thompson (The FA) and Rich Wilson (Southwell City FC)
