Pre-season in full swing!

AFC Unity are very grateful for the funding from the Just Play programme that enabled us to hold our inaugural training sessions at the excellent U-Mix Centre.

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The sessions meant we were able to engage over twenty players – some beginners, others experienced – in our training activities, which has been an impressive response to what has so far been a modest marketing campaign by the club. Our coach, Jonny Hodgson, has done very well in developing the skills of what has been a great group of players.

Through this, we have seen the foundations of a full squad being built, and with this basis we are proceeding to the stage of registering players and arranging friendly fixtures over the summer, in addition to scheduling further pre-season training.

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We’re proud to announce that, in addition to manager Jay Baker and assistant manager Tim Gilhooly, Jane Watkinson has been selected as captain of the team and Rosie Oates vice-captain.

Jay Baker said, “I’m so proud of the great bunch of players we have, and the development of a team that is meeting the club’s values based on community, camaraderie, and respect. It’s exciting to put them together in a team as we approach the start of the 2014/15 season in the second division of the Sheffield & Hallamshire Women’s County Football League. A real find, (coach) Jonny Hodgson has been key to this and has done a fantastic job of coaching so far.”

Santander-sponsored shirts!

One of our players, Rosie Oates, has been able to leverage her employer, Santander, into kindly providing AFC Unity with kit, completely free of charge.

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As mentioned, AFC Unity will be playing in white socks, black shorts, and red shirts – the latter of which you can see in the image above, still wrapped up.

AFC Unity are incredibly appreciative of this support from Santander, who have helped ease strains on our finances significantly as a result. This will help AFC Unity move forward even more effectively in the near future, and we look forward to our players wearing these shirts in the upcoming season!