Young footballers from Bradley Stoke Youth FC (BSYFC) were given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take part as one of the seven teams in the team parade at The FA Community Shield 2017 supported by McDonald’s, on Sunday 6th August.

The BSYFC players formed a guard of honour around the pitch at Wembley Stadium before Emirates FA Cup Winners Arsenal won 4-1 on penalties against Premier League champions Chelsea, in front of over 83,000 fans.

A local “grassroots” team, BSYFC secured their place on the pitch via local McDonald’s franchisee Mike Guerin, who has supported the club for eleven years as part of the McDonald’s Club Twinning Programme.

The programme began in 2008 and has already seen over 1,000 grassroots clubs across the country twinned with McDonald’s restaurants. This is just one of the many ways in which McDonald’s supports accredited grassroots clubs through their Community Partnership with The FA, helping to raise the standards of the grassroots game for all.

Grassroots clubs across the country who are twinned with their local McDonald’s restaurants receive support through the provision of kit and equipment, business advice and assistance with hosting community football events.

Emma Brown, Team Manager at Bradley Stoke Youth FC, said:

“We were extremely grateful to receive the chance to walk out at a sold-out Wembley Stadium. This opportunity comes around once-in-a-lifetime and the kids haven’t stopped talking about it since – they’re all still star struck from seeing their heroes up close! We want to extend our thanks to Mike Guerin as without him and his relationship with McDonald’s, we wouldn’t have opportunities like this. Mike truly has been a fantastic help to the club and we look forward to working with him for years to come.”

More: 15th anniversary of McDonald’s Community Football programme »

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On Saturday 24th June, Bradley Stoke Netball Club (BSNC) celebrated over 15 years of the club with a charity fundraising evening in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support, BSNC’s chosen charity for 2016/17.

The event was a year in the planning and nearly 80 past and present BSNC members and their families attended the fun-packed night in the Heineken Lounge at Ashton Gate Stadium.

The evening kicked off with a speech from outgoing chairperson Katherine Budden, who paid tribute to all the volunteers who have helped to run BSNC over the years. She also thanked all partners, family members and supporters who are behind the scenes encouraging players week in week out. Finally, she thanked the coaches who work hard to deliver continuous development to all the club members.

There were also some end of season awards, including a very special (and the first-ever) BSNC Lifetime Achievement Award for coach Helen Newman, who has been with the club for 15 years and was also the founding member and inspiration behind Bradley Stoke Junior Netball Club, now a thriving club for ages 11 – 16.

The rest of the evening was about fundraising and fun. An amazing amount of money was raised through a raffle and an auction of enviable prizes. The club was grateful to receive some fantastic donations from The Aztec Hotel & Spa, UnderArmour, Bristol City Football Club, The Hilton at Bradley Stoke, Sony Playstation, The Bristol Harbour Hotel and other local businesses. After the final pounds and pence were added up, the club had raised £2,000 for Macmillan and had a great night to celebrate a fabulous club. After the event, the total was increased to £2,500 after a bid to Lloyds Bank was successful and it contributed an additional £500 to the club’s fundraising.

Anyone interested in playing club netball, should visit the BSNC website for further information.

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Bradley Stoke Youth FC’s Martin Lee has stepped down from organising the annual Bradley Stoke Schools’ Festival of Football after eleven incredibly successful years.

The event has become a highlight in the local sporting calendar and this year’s renewal attracted 130 Year 1 children from 13 different local primary schools.

To mark the occasion, club sponsor McDonald’s presented Martin with a trophy and a bottle of champagne at the end of the prize-giving ceremony for this year’s festival.

Fellow BSYFC coach James Murdoch, who works with the current U10s, commented:

“Martin is a true community champion and has put in countless hours organising school visits from the club’s coaches before and after the Easter break in order to provide free football coaching at schools in the Bradley Stoke area. He has also encouraged these schools to attend the football festival, and return all the trophies every year.”

Martin has also worked very closely with the local McDonald’s restaurant franchisee Mike Guerin throughout a ten-year association with the club. During this time, coaching equipment and kits for teams of all age groups have been provided through the McDonald’s Better Play initiative.

Photo (l-r): Mark Pickering (BSYFC coach), Martin Lee, Cllr Andy Ward and James Murdoch (BSYFC coach)

This article originally appeared in the July/August 2017 issue of the Bradley Stoke Journal news magazine (on page 13). The magazine is delivered FREE, EVERY MONTH, to 9,500 homes in Bradley Stoke, Little Stoke and Stoke Lodge. Phone 01454 300 400 to enquire about advertising or leaflet insertion.

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On Saturday 10th June, Bradley Stoke Youth FC (BSYFC) hailed the success of their latest Schools’ Football Festival at the Jubilee Centre, which attracted 130 Year 1 children representing 13 different local primary schools and 45 Year 2 children from the BSYFC teams. The festival is the finale to the club’s School Link Programme where BSYFC’s FA Qualified Level 1 and 2 coaches go into the schools and coach all the Year 1 children for a three-week period at each school. The programme starts in February and finishes in the last school in May, ready for the Festival in June.

The Football Festival has been running since 2006 and over the years has developed into a major event as part of the town’s annual Community Festival, with over 1,650 children having now taken part. The School Link Programme started in 2007 and has grown over the years to become a major community activity with over 7,000 children having received football skills coaching in their school.

At the festival, every child received a medal and a gift bag full of football-related essentials like shin pads, football socks, water bottle, baseball cap, activity play pack and sweets. Each school received a cup and a ball bag with size 3 footballs, so they can continue the football coaching at their school. The winning school also received a new kit for their team. The Teacher Awards this year went to Iron Acton and Stoke Lodge.

Football Festival organiser Martin Lee said:

“The club would like to recognize all the club coaches, managers and helpers who assisted on the day, ensuring the success of this community event. Also a big thanks to our key long term sponsors McDonald’s, Bradley Stoke Town Council and the Gloucestershire FA.”

More: Festival award winners and team photos »

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