What a year for Rye Bay Football Club! The club started the season concerned about the closure of the Under 15s team and the long-term viability of the club but thanks to a dedicated and talented set of coaches and a group of passionate committee members, they are proud to be ending the year with a raft of good news across all areas of the club.
This season, the club have doubled the number of colts at Rye Bay and now have 26 young players joining coach Chris Catt on Sunday morning. Chris is excellent at teaching the starter skills to get these youngsters understanding and loving the game.
Ali MacDonald was welcomed as Under 8s Manager. Ali took an enthusiastic ‘first season’ side into the Rother League with fantastic results winning the accolade of ‘Best Sporting Team’.
The Under 12s also performed brilliantly thanks to the experience, guidance and grit of seasoned Manager Darren Paine. The team improved game on game with 100% commitment from the players, achieving fifth place in a highly competitive Rother League. Rye Bay will be joined next season by teacher Charlie Cornford who will be the new under 8s manager.
Following the redecoration of the clubhouse by housing association charity Amicus Horizon, the club have been delighted that players and supporters are using the space more. Volunteers have been cooking up bacon butties and serving hot drinks on training and match days, which has been much appreciated by home and away sides. We also launched our Facebook page (Rye Bay Football Club) to raise awareness of the club with the local community and have had regular news items in Rye News.
Thanks to the genuine goodwill and generosity of coaches, parents and players the club have had an impressive season and they remain committed to keeping alive the spirit of training young people to play good, local football.
A big thank you to everyone who attended presentation day. It was a fantastic success and young and old thoroughly enjoyed it. The day started with games for all the teams followed by the presentation of certificates and trophies to all our young players.
The BBQ, kitchen and cake stall also raised over £600 of much-needed funds for the running of the club next season. It was the perfect way to celebrate the end of a very successful season for the club.
Photos by Rhoda Parry