Since starting the programme in 2015 we have seen it grow from strength to strength and we can now add these achievements to the ‘community club of the year’ award we won back in 2016.

- Steve Noel Thomas - Holywell Town FITC

Holywell Town Football in the Community celebrated double success this week following the announcement of the winners of the annual FAW Trust grassroots football awards. The awards celebrate the hard work of the unsung heroes who make football tick and our FITC team were delighted to pick up 2 awards from the North East Wales category!

Firstly, FITC coach Jordan Hadaway won N.E.Wales grassroots ‘Community Coach of the Year’. This award recognises the outstanding contribution of a coach at a grassroots club and rewards someone who encourages more people starting, staying and/or succeeding in football through high quality coaching. Jordan has ticked all of those boxes and is a huge asset to the club working at community, junior and first team levels at the club.

Secondly, the club also won N.E.Wales ‘Grassroots Project of the Year’. This was in recognition of the club ‘growing the girls game’ in Holywell which has seen the development of a girls hub set up that has delivered weekly coaching sessions to girls aged 6-13. This has then led to the club playing fixtures and festivals against other local girls teams in Flintshire of which they will continue to do going in to the new season.
Steve Thomas, who is chairman of the FITC programme, was delighted with the news. ‘’These awards further cement our standing in the community as being a fantastic fun football provider. Since starting the programme in 2015 we have seen it grow from strength to strength and we can now add these achievements to the ‘community club of the year’ award we won back in 2016.

‘’To see Jordan win that award is a proud moment given that I have seen him progress from being a participant in our programmes to one of our lead coaches. He deserves this award in recognition for the hard work he puts in at the club and to help him further his coach education we have paid for him to enrol on the FAW UEFA B License course which starts this week’’. ‘’In addition, I would like to thank Mike Parry at the FAW for his fantastic support in helping us to grow the girls game in Holywell. I’d also like to thank Jordan, Jamie Sharp and Dan Williams for supporting myself deliver the weekly girl’s sessions that will resume in September following our Summer break’’.

Meanwhile Jordan added, "Winning the award to me was astonishing and I didn’t expect it. I do all the coaching for the players and the community side of the club. To win such a prestigious award like this with the FAW eans a lot but to win it with your hometown club means more. I put a lot of hours into my coaching to make sure all players benefit the most from my sessions. Obviously parents can see that as they have voted for me to win this award. There was loads of other nominees so for me to be picked is all down to the amount of people that voted for me. This year is massive for me as a coach, as this year I have been introduced as coach with the first team.

I would like to say thanks to Steve Noel Thomas for teaching me all he knows in the sport industry , I am a younger version of him and this is because he has taken the time to teach me, and to Dan Williams for giving me the go ahead to take the coaching on by myself.
Also, i would like to thank Andy Lewis for taking me under his wing this year so far in adult football and teaching me little parts of the game.

The Club and Jordan will both receive their awards in a glittering ceremony in Cardiff in a couple of months time.

Well done to all...…..