Hello all, on a monthly basis I will be writing a Chairman's report at the end of each month given everyone an update/insight of things happening at your club.

Firstly, I would like to say how proud of all the players, coaches and parents at our club, I really could not ask for better group of people around me as we continue to develop something special here.

Events

Earlier in January some key dates were announced for events to be held within our club this year, for those that have missed these posts here are the keys dates again for you.

• 18th May 2019 - Presentation
• 29th & 30th June 2019 - Our tournament
• 06th December 2019 - Xmas Party

Please keep these dates free where possible, especially our tournament where all hands will be needed to make the event run smoothly again.

Coaches Update

We continue to invest in our coaches with 2 new coaches being booked onto their FA Level 1 coaching course and 3 longer serving coaches currently working through their level 2 courses, which is a real commitment to complete, so the benefits of this should be evident to the teams they are currently working with. We welcome any parents interested in getting involved in coaching to express their interest through there current coach of team they are connected to. That coach can then pass this information onto anyone of committee members.

Finances

Sean Palmer, our treasurer, is doing a fantastic job looking after our accounts, but we are having some trouble with monthly subs. If you are not set up on the 'clubs' standing order process, to ensure your child's subs are paid each month, please get set up as this causes extra work for Sean. If you are unsure how to get set up please speak to your manager or contact Sean directly, likewise, if you are setting up on a standing order, please ensure your payment reference has your child's name on and current age group.

Social Media

Well done to Tom Lees, who has taken over this important role from Tom Lawlor. This role is fundamental for us to create and continue our 'family club' ethos, with weekly posts such as how all our teams, throughout the age groups are progressing week after week. Keep up the good work Tom.

Coach/Parent Rep

With the above change in mind, a club of our size needed a point of contact for all our coaches and you as parents for any issues/concerns that you may wish to discuss. Our Vice Chairman Tom Lawlor, took this post and we have already seen the benefits on quite a few occasions this season. I am delighted to report that each case that was brought to his attention was resolved in a professional and timely manner and this process will continue to run until further notice. Tom can be contacted on 07501 012055.

Website

Again, another massive thank you must go to Chris George, who has managed to get our website up and running something as club we have been looking to do. A lot of hard work and time has gone into this website and although it is running, there are still a few stumbling blocks as with these things...but I'm sure you all will agree it looks brilliant. 

Any suggestions to improve or add to the website are welcome, please drop any suggestions to Chris on cjgeorge3485@hotmail.com

For this who have not seen our website site the web search is Port of Bristol Youth Football Club or click the link below.
https://www.portofbristolyouthfootballclub.co.uk/

5 Year Strategy Plan

As I've mentioned already we have something special being developed here and again I must thank Chris George for leading this development plan that was signed off by the committee and published to our members last month. This will be re-visited every June and updated and of course the findings being published to you.

Teams

We have seen the launch of our U5s this season which is fantastic and I have had the pleasure of watching a couple of training sessions and coach Tom Lawlor, with help from Tom Nightingale and Chris Ellis have created a fun safe environment for these kids to enjoy football.

Our U6s and U7s have both expanded there squads drastically ready for the 2019/2020 season with some exciting times ahead for these group of players as they are trailing a 'new Foundation Phase', with will rolled out over the next 12 months

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Our U8s/U9s/U10s have all be competing in various competitive and friendly fixtures and all the teams involved have been doing the club proud. Keep up the excellent work.

Well done to the U11s who reached there 2nd cup final of the season, the fantastic work with the lads has not gone unnoticed.

U12s/U13s/U14s/U18s are all flying in there leagues with the U12s/U14s and U18s all fighting for top spots in their respected leagues. Our U14s lost in the semi final of there cup, it was a great cup run for them but ended by a team from the league above. Our U18s are still fighting for the double with a cup semi final appearance coming very soon. The U13s are very much a team in transition and have now got a full squad of players and are working extremely hard and improvement is evident week in week out. They have a cup 1/4 final appearance to look forward to in March.

As a club we are always seeking sponsorship for training equipment, match day equipment, coaching development if anyone has any potential sponsors please get contact with any of the committee members to discuss in more depth.

Once again thank you for your continued support. If anyone has any issues or concerns about anything please feel free to contact me direct.
Everyone keep up the hard work.
Let's enjoy watching all the kids develop, learn and enjoy the football in a fun and safe environment.

Kind regards,
Van Papantoniou
Port of Bristol Youth Chairman

Committee Structure

Van Papantoniou - Chairman
07793413943

Sean Palmer - Treasurer
07958195480

Chris George - Welfare Officer
07879291339

Tom Lawlor - Coach/Parent Rep
07501012055

Tom Lees - Social Media Rep
07990280118