by John Corbin
Calverley has had a senior amateur football club as long back as anybody today can remember, but the amateur game is changing, sadly not for the better.
Calverley United play their home games in the local park, and the old changing rooms are shared with the local cricket club.
The football club is self-financing through subscriptions paid by the players; the subscriptions go towards the hire of the pitch from Leeds City Council.
The maintenance and marking out of the pitch is carried out by the club for every home game. The running costs also include the referees’ expenses and the hire of training facilities at Benton Park Astro Turf.
Last season the club nearly folded due to lack of players and support which resulted in having to drop down a league to survive, they now have only one senior team playing in the seventh division of the Yorkshire Amateur league.
Having stabilised matters, the club is now looking to drive forward. Promising young players have been recruited, and winning results have been forthcoming with the team
now challenging for promotion.
To progress the club further they are looking to strengthen their squad both on and off the pitch, ready for next season. They are looking for volunteers to help coach the team, help with preparing the ground and administration.
The club is looking to inspire a new generation of footballers and supporters to bring back a sense of Yorkshire grit to our community.
Their next home game is against Wakefield Owls, on Saturday, 14 February at 2pm. If you are interested in supporting the club in any way – including sponsorship – e-mail Richard Corbin at krja.corbin@gmail.com.
Sponsored content
