Reserve Team – Page 2 – Tuffley Rovers AFC

Season Ticket deal launched

Tuffley Rovers have launched their Season Ticket deal for 2022/23 and there is no increase in price for anyone looking to renew their Season Ticket, as long as they renew on or before 30 April 2022.

The full list of prices are, as follows:

Early Bird Renewal Renewal on or before 30 April 2022	Cost of £40
New Early Bird Purchased on or before 31 May 2022	Cost of £50
Adult	Cost of £60
Over 65s	Cost of £30
Under 18s	Cost of £20
U15s	Free

The application form is available via the club website, together with a copy of the Terms & Conditions for season tickets. Please email admin@tuffleyroversfc.co.uk for further details.

Rovers face another away day but Glevum Park waits

For the eleventh successive time during the early days of the 2021/22 competitive playing season Tuffley Rovers will play away from their Glevum Park home, as they travel to face Brimscombe & Thrupp on Saturday 18 September 2021.

Work to significantly improve the drainage system on The Rovers’ pitch started in April and although it had been hoped that this would support a return to hosting games in time for the new season, that hasn’t proved possible and the Glevum Park pitch remains out of action.

Whilst it had been hoped that the fixture against Brimscombe could be played at their home, Rovers had to concede that the pitch wasn’t quite ready and this weekend’s fixture was switched to The Meadow, with Sam Prior’s side the home side.

It is now hoped that Rovers can finish the pitch improvements in time for their FA Vase tie on Saturday, 25 September, when they are due to host Fleet Spurs in the Second Qualifying Round.

Palmer decides to bow out but hopes for a fitting finale

Tuffley Rovers will be looking for a new manager of their Development Squad after Michael Palmer decided to step down from the role, as well as his position as manager of the club’s U18s squad.

Palmer’s two years with the Hellenic League club have been heavily impacted by the Covid pandemic, with neither of his seasons with the Development Squad – the first in the Gloucestershire Northern Senior League and the second in Hellenic League, Division Two (West) – being fully completed, with his tenure covering only 30 competitive fixtures in two years (with a win ratio of 43% over the two campaigns).

However, much greater success has come in his role with the Rovers U18s squad, where 27 competitive games have yielded a win ratio of almost 63% and included a magnificent, record breaking run in the FA Youth Cup this season, with the club reaching the First Round Proper for the first time in their history, before a battling defeat at EFL club Cheltenham Town.

In addition, the departing coach has greatly assisted the development of several players, including Jacob Geddes and Rudi McKinnon who have become first team regulars with the club‘ s Hellenic League Premier Division side.

The final fixture of Palmer’s spell will come in the shape of the S Turier & Son Cheltenham Youth League Cup Final tomorrow (Thursday) night, when his side will face Bishops Cleeve at Evesham United’s Jubilee Stadium.

Palmer has yet to confirm his next role and is looking forward to a brief spell away from the game to “recharge his batteries”, following a conversation with Rovers’ Chairman Dan Boon.

“Mike spoke with me today and confirmed that he was looking to take a short break, following some difficult personal circumstances, but also felt now was a good time to look for a new role”, Boon confirmed. “He leaves on good terms, having done a good job in his two roles, and we wish him every success in the future.”

Palmer was also quick to acknowledge the support he’d received during his time at The Rovers.

“I have thoroughly enjoyed my time with Tuffley Rovers and I would like to thank all the staff and officials at the club for being so welcoming, encouraging and supportive”, he confirmed. “In addition, all the supporters who continued to spur us on even within a difficult year due to Covid.”

Palmer reserved special praise for another group.

“Most of all I want to say a big thank you to all the players and their families for all their efforts and support over the last two years. I wish the club all the success in the future.”

Chairman, Dan Boon, confirmed that the club were looking to take a different approach to management of their Development and U18s sides going forward.

“Given Mike’s decision this offers an opportunity to look again at the structure we have in place and we are probably looking to recruit separate management teams for the two squads he is leaving”, he explained.

Ken Blackburn, Head of Football Development, was effusive in his praise of Palmer.

“Michael has worked tirelessly in his roles with both the U18s and Development squads, this last two, difficult seasons. This has resulted in improved results, not least the FA Youth Cup run, and a number of young players coming through for the first team. It is sad that he has decided to move on and we will look to build on the hard work he has put in whilst at Tuffley Rovers, something I would like to thank him for.”

Anyone interested in applying for either role should send an expression of interest, setting out their experience and why they believe they are a suitable candidate, to admin@tuffleyroversfc.co.uk not later than 5pm on 16 June 2021.

Charity remains at the heart of Rovers’ kit designs

New sponsorship deals confirmed!

Hot on the heels of agreeing a new main sponsorship deal for their new first team kit, Tuffley Rovers have now confirmed the final design of their 2021/22 AthElite Sports match-day shirts for both of their Hellenic League sides.

As revealed two weeks ago, Rovers will wear the logo of South West Electrical on the front of their shirts next season, but they have now been able to confirm JMJ Fabrications Ltd as the main shirt sponsor for their Hellenic League Division Two squad, with JMJ’s Director, Jamie Gibbons, extending a long-standing association to the club through his backing of the Development Squad.

“We have a great relationship with Tuffley Rovers, who are literally very close to us, as they are on the doorstep of our own business” Gibbons confirmed. “Having worked with the club over the past 7 years we were keen to continue our support and sponsoring the Development Squad was an easy decision for us to make.”

Rovers have also agreed a deal with Ruroc, who are global brand, based locally, who sell ski and motorcycle helmets and apparel around the world and will see their logo on the sleeve of all nine Rovers adult section teams. Visit Ruroc.com to learn more about their product range.

In addition D&G Contracting Ltd, another local business, providing a wide range of construction services across the UK, have added their logo to the shoulders of all adult kits, as part of a separate sponsorship deal. You can read more about D&G Contracting Ltd via their website.

The logos for each company will form part of the new shirt design for the 2021/22 season, sitting alongside the logo of local charity, Heart Heroes, who the club have adopted as their charity for the last 12 months and will continue to work with in the next season. The charity’s logo will adorn one sleeve, alongside the new already confirmed that the change kit for all adult teams will be a green and pink design based around the Heart Heroes colours.

Kelly Cornish, the founder of Heart Heroes, was delighted with the club’s decision to include the charity as part of the kit design.

“Heart Heroes is very honoured and excited to see Tuffley Rovers new sponsors on the new shirt, but also delighted with the sleeve design showing our own logo. We cannot thank Tuffley Rovers enough for their support and our heart heroes are looking forward to being able to wear the kit themselves.”

With all the sponsors now confirmed, the design of the new AthElite Sports branded kit is now complete for both Hellenic League sides in 2021/22.

“We’re delighted to have sorted some really good sponsorship deals out so early”, Club Secretary, Neil Spiller, confirmed. “JMJ and Ruroc are returning sponsors, so we’re incredibly grateful for their continued support, which is invaluable to the club. Adding D&G Contracting and South West Electrical to the Rovers family means that we’ve not only been able to increase sponsorship revenue, but also form new relationships which we hope can be beneficial to all parties.”

“We’ve had such a positive response to the new kit designs and, if I say so myself, the company logos all just seem to blend in perfectly”, he added. “Including the Heart Heroes logo on the shirts was simply the perfect way to complete the design we intend to use next season.”

New kits revealed

NEW KIT REVEAL!

As exclusively revealed via Severn Sport today, we are now able to confirm our new Home kit design for 2021/22 and 2022/23.

Having worn Claret & Blue since their formation in 1929, Rovers’ latest kit suppliers have come up with a modern design, which is the first kit produced by AthElite, as they look to expand the business started in 2018 by local Gloucestershire footballers Harlie Price, Matt Liddiard and Callum Preece.

Both parties are understandably delighted with the new deal, which will also see AthElite providing a full range of merchandise to be worn across the club’s senior and junior sections.

“I’m delighted to have this partnership in place and also be the first club to wear the AthElite brand across both adult and youth sections” said Rovers’ Chairman, Dan Boon. “We have already formed a strong working relationship with AthElite, who have been a pleasure to work with, and this is a deal that goes beyond simply launching the newly designed kits. They will also be providing us with an on-site and online club shop facility that will be a fantastic development for us.”

The new kit will be worn by all Tuffley Rovers sides, in both the youth and senior sections, from the start of next season and Harlie Price was quick to confirm how pleased AthElite are with the new deal.

“We are really excited to be able to work closely with Tuffley Rovers Football Club”, he confirmed. “The deal we have done will have huge benefits to the growth of our business, as well as benefiting a local football club, too.”

Price was also very enthusiastic about the way in which the deal had developed, and the relationship that was now in place. “We approached Tuffley Rovers as we knew they are a forward thinking club, with a committee who are willing to try out new things and listen to ideas”, he added. “From the moment conversations started it has been really positive and snowballed into a really exciting prospect. We are really excited to see what the future will hold for us all.”

In the coming days the new partnership will make further announcements, including confirming their new second and third choice strips, as well as new sponsors and the development of a new club shop facility, hosted by their newest kit provider.

If you’d like to see the growing range of AthElite Sports products you can visit their website at www.athelitesports.co.uk.

Rovers feeling charitable this Christmas!

Hellenic Leag ue Premier Division club Tuffley Rovers have, like many clubs, seen their on-field action this season disrupted by the impact of Covid-19 but they have still been busy, as a series of charitable, fund-raising ventures have been undertaken across the club’s nine senior teams.

In the late summer several of the club’s players and new Chairman, Dan Boon, completed a marathon walk in aid of Heart Heroes, raising over £3,600 for the local charity, before the club’s commercial team then partnered with their Ladies’ team sponsor, local sign-making firm Severn Signs, to raise more money for the same cause, through the sale of pitch-side advertising barriers. The club took no profit from the sales and helped to raise over £700.

The club were finally able to present the funds to Heart Heroes’ founder, Kelly Cornish, this week, with the funds of over £4,000 likely to make a real difference to the children who are supported by the charity.

“We been blown away by the support from The Tuffley Rovers club. We were lucky enough to see the lads when they finished their walk and most had been pushed to the limit. The amount raised was totally amazing. We’d like to say “thank you” to all involved”, said Kelly.

The club are now also in the process of collecting money to donate to a Christmas Food Bank, organised by the Podsmead Big Local, so that people who are struggling with food poverty.

Chairman, Dan Boon, is hoping this isn’t the last of the fund-raising efforts, whichever charity the club is trying to support.

“We’ve previously done a lot of fund-raising with another local charity, The James Hopkins Trust, but one of our players has a direct association to Heart Heroes, so we decided to give them some support this season”, he confirmed. “However, we are also keen to build on our relationship with the local community and what better cause than helping to ensure people have food on the table this Christmas?”, he added.

After the recent successes, the club have committed to doing all they can to help local charities and the local community and it is hoped that 2021 will see yet more activity to support these fantastic causes.

Attention has already turned to another campaign supporting Heart Heroes, with the club determined to support the charity in their quest to help families affected by Covid-19 who need portable ECG devices to support routine checks. £100 will help a child have essential checks that have been delayed by the cancellation of hospital appointments during the pandemic. Further details can be found via: https://www.kindlink.com/fundraising/Heart-Heroes/alivecor.

Kelly confirmed that the ECG devices will make a real difference to the families supported by the charity.

“These devices will help and facilitate the diagnosis of arrhythmia in our children and help in arriving at an early diagnosis in those with delayed access to services and those with infrequent symptoms. This will help cardiologists pick up the children with spaced symptoms, as well as get help for those who have been on the waiting list for a long time, due to Covid-19 interruptions.”

If any individuals or local businesses want to help the club and support the local charity they are urged to make contact via Commercial@tuffleyroversfc.co.uk for further details.

Ladies lead the way during week of mixed results

The final game of a week that saw eight games played, ended with the most emphatic of scorelines, as the Ladies’ team recovered from their first defeat of the season the previous week (a 4-0 defeat against Ellwood) to record a 17-0 win over Bradley Stoke Vixens, in the Gloucestershire Women’s County League Division 3 fixture on Sunday.

Our calendar for the week saw the U18s kick-off proceedings on Thursday evening and they recorded a historic win – taking the club to the Third Qualifying Round of the FA Youth Cup for the first time ever – as they overcame Radstock Town 6-2 in front of a crowd of 109. Rudi McKinnon scored four times and Yomi Ajibola twice, in a superb performance that booked a trip to face Torquay United in the next stage of the competition.

The weekend then arrived, although not for the first team, who saw their Hellenic League, Premier Division fixture against Fairford Town postponed. The Development Squad (Reserves) made the trip to Herefordshire, to face Kington Town, but returned having lost 6-3 despite goals from Nathan Kay, Finley Kent and Yomi Ajibola.

In the Stroud League, there were victories for the Thirds and Fourths. The third team saw off Avonvale United 3-1, in Division 2, with the Fourths playing at Glevum Park and being inspired to come back from 2-0 down, as superb goals from Paul Jones and Jack Webb, coupled with a first goal for Tyerese Douglas, saw them overcome Minchinhampton Reserves. The third game of the day saw the Fifths go down to a 4-0 defeat against Old Richians Reserves.

Sunday saw three games, the first two ending in defeat as the Veterans First XI lost 2-1 to Shipton Oliffe, despite Rob Cook’s goal, shortly after the Reserves had lost 6-1 to Grays Athletic, despite Craig Williams’ goal.

Then came the resounding end to the weekend, as goals from Chloe Taylor (3), Ellie Carrington-Windo (3), Jess Dobbins (3) , Robyn Lee (2), Danielle Proctor (2), Katie Morrissey, Ellen Knight, Imogen Maguire and Laura Howell saw the Ladies’ side record their biggest ever win against the Vixens from Bradley Stoke. A nice way to end the weekend…

A Sunday Summary, with the emphasis on Sunday!

Sometimes you just need the week to end well and it puts very positive gloss on things…although an excellent Sunday for Tuffley Rovers was not the only highlight of a week that was only slight derailed by a fairly forgettable Saturday afternoon!

The week started with a bang, as Rovers’ U18s ran riot against a Cheltenham Town Development Squad, who shipped ten goals, as Michael Palmer’s squad hit double-figures without reply, with braces for Rudi McKinnon, Joshua Bird, Finley Kent and James Sunley, accompanied by goals for Ayomide Ajibola and Mackenzie Wilson.

With the first team game postponed on Tuesday evening, as Longlevens awaited the outcome of some Covid-19 tests, the next game was to prove the highlight of the week, as McKinnon was amongst the goals again, netting a hat-trick in a sensational 4-1 FA Youth Cup win over Bath City’s Academy side, in front of a crowd of 147 at Glevum Park. An unfortunate OG, from James Sunley’s drilled corner, completed the scoring and sets up a tie against Bridgwater Town in the next round.

Then Saturday came and there were some poor results to review, with the Fourths beaten 5-0 at Chalford 3rds and the Fifths going down 4-3 in a thrilling game against Saintbridge. Will Cronshaw’s side had taken trailed 3-1 but pulled it back to 3-3, with goals from debutants Kye Brice and Corey Jones, alongside a goal from Henry Jordan, but an unsavoury incident which saw a mass confrontation before the dismissal of a Saintbridge player, put the afternoon off course and then, with a draw looking the most likely outcome, the hosts managed to force home a headed effort which Rovers’ keeper Dave Griffiths will probably think he might have kept out that secured them the win.

With the first team going down to a fifth consecutive defeat at Flackwell Heath – Henry Birkett’s 83rd minute goal proving a rare highlight in the season, to date – it was left the the Development Squad to restore a little pride and they looked to be heading for a win over Newent Town Reserves, as they led 4-1 courtesy of a brace from Nathan Kay, a first of the season for Niall Priday and a rare goal for Jayson Watkins, but a late fightback saw Newent rally to make it 4-4 and share the points.

Sunday provided a much better set of results, with Griffiths atoning for his error on Saturday by starring in two wins for the Veterans’ teams. First he made some terrific saves, despite conceding four, to help Gary Wordley’s team to a 5-4 win over Abbeymead Rover. Dave Cornock hit a hat-trick, to pick up where he left off last season, whilst Ade Viner and Matt Mallett were also on the scoresheet. Then, Griffiths raced over to Winchcombe to play the second half for Mark Patterson’s side, who beat Quedgeley Wanderers 2-1 in their opening league game; Rovers legend Shayne Bradley scoring the winner in the final ten minutes, after Steve Badham had cancelled out debutant Daryl Cook’s opener for Rovers.

In the final game of the weekend, the Ladies’ team made it two wins from two, as they triumphed 5-2 against Winchcombe Town Ladies, with Holly Kay scoring twice, alongside goals for Jade Papps and sisters Chloe & Seana Taylor.

There is another busy week ahead, so until next time that concludes this week’s Sunday Summary.

Friday Night Football at Glevum Park….

…and a busy weekend ahead!

After the disappointment of exiting the Emirates FA Cup at the first hurdle on Tuesday evening, we have the joy of some Friday Night Football at Glevum Park, as the First XI host Hereford Pegasus in a pre-season game. Reduced admission prices will be in operation (£3 adults; £1 concessions; U16s free; Season Tickets valid) and gates will open from 6:15pm onwards.

On Saturday the ground will be open for the England match at 5pm, but prior to that our Fourth & Fifth teams will play a 12:30pm kick-off (free admission) to ensure that we don’t have another Saturday without some football at Glevum Park! The bar will be open throughout.

Then, on Sunday, our third team will be completing their charity walk, in aid of Heart Heroes, so we are opening up the Glevum Park bar from 12:30pm, to allow people to come along and cheer their return (approximately 3pm) whilst having a few drinks, as the forecast looks positive.

Fingers crossed for a great weekend. #uptherovers

New Football Chair appointed

Tuffley Rovers have a new Football Chair, with the appointment of Dan Boon, as Interim Chair, following the decision of the previous incumbent, Neil Spiller, to step down from the role two weeks ago.

Spiller, who will remain at the club, had been holding a dual responsibility as Chairman and Football Secretary, but decided to call time on one of those roles, which created a vacancy and this has been filled, at least in the short-term, by 36-year-old Boon, who has been involved with the club since 2011.

The new Chair will now work alongside his predecessor, as well as Ken Blackburn, the Head of Football Development, as they look to shape the future of the club, with any ambitions for success undented by the recent change in leadership.

“The club has been moving in the right direction for some time, and so I’d like to pick up where Neil has left off, but working with him and the rest of the committee to put Tuffley Rovers in a position where we can offer facilities and a club culture that we can be proud of”, confirmed Boon.

“We need to look at creating an environment where all of our teams, coaches, spectators and anyone connected to the club enjoy their football, whilst we also become as competitive as possible, challenging for silverware in as many competitions as possible”, he added. “However, we also need to focus on player development and retention, so individuals can see a pathway to whichever level they aspire to play at, as well as establishing a much stronger community presence, creating partnerships with the local community and then with more organisations across Gloucester.”

The outgoing Chair, Spiller, was quick to welcome the appointment.

“I am delighted Dan, who is someone who has become increasingly involved in the club, has stepped up to take on this role”, he said. “I think we’ve made great progress in recent years, but I felt that we need to spread the load by stepping back from some of the responsibilities that come with being the Chairman”, he confirmed. “With Ken Blackburn’s role now clearly established, I thought it was a good time to hand over the reins and Dan is, in my view, the right person to take this forward.”

With plans to start the 2020/21 season still very much up in the air, Boon might have to wait a while for his first competitive football as Chairman, with none of the nine sides he’ll now lead yet clear on when their respective campaigns will start.