A new season message from our Chairman Danny Saines

Dear All,

I am anticipating another excellent season for the club. There have been a few significant changes over the summer, mostly positive I hasten to add!

The club would like to welcome back Luke Johnson as Saturday First XI manager, assisted by Tom Jewers and Paul Eddleston who has stepped back as manager after 30 years' service. We welcome Luke and wish him every success and thank Ed for all that he has achieved at the club. Please support Luke in every way you can.

We also welcome Dan Penn as manager of the new Sunday Second XI, playing in division one of the WESFA league. Again we wish him success in a tough league.

On the juniors side we say goodbye to the Colts as they had reached a natural ending to their many seasons together. I thank manager Paul Raggett who will continue in his role of Head of Youth Football and help out in many other ways as he always has done.

Finally we have a new Under 9s team, currently working hard to form a squad to complement our thriving junior section taking it up to four teams.

We will also see the departure of Adam Dannatt as the club's Child Welfare Officer and welcome in Megan Glen as the new Welfare Officer. We thank Adam for his services and wish Meg all the best in her new role.

Gary Willison has also stepped back as assistant groundsman and we wish him well as he moves down to Maidstone. No doubt he will be tapping them up down the Gallagher Stadium at every opportunity.

I would personally like to thank Jordan for his behind the scenes work dealing with all the club’s football kit and apparel requests and orders. Jordan has established the club with new suppliers 3Q, forming a solid partnership.

And not forgetting Colin who continues to update the superb club website on a daily basis, Couch for all his dealings with the Kent County FA, Paul Parsons for his work on fixtures (and as the club referee) and Steve Viner who is looking after the pitches over the summer, making sure that they are in tip top condition for when the season starts. Plus of course our many team managers who continue to represent the club with enthusiasm and dedication.

The response for the request to try and source (or retain) sponsorship has been astonishing. I would like to thank everyone who has made this happen. We have secured thousands of pounds in deals, enabling teams to get new kit and apparel. Every team manager has pushed to make this happen and please thank your sponsors for supporting the club. If you haven’t already done so, please try and obtain your sponsor's logo in digital format so Colin can place it onto the website.

It was good to hear that we have so many at training on Wednesday nights supporting Luke and please remember that season training starts back at Bishop Justus on a Wednesday evening commencing 4th September. Juniors will start in the same week at Harris Academy Orpington.

On a final note, the Montessori Nursery has now departed from the club. This will leave a huge hole in our finances; therefore it is imperative that all teams support the club financially however possible.

I look forward to catching up with everyone again once the pre-season friendlies start.

Up the Guild!

      Danny

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Congratulations Harry! Welcome Keke!

Harry Lauder was recognised for his scoring feats last season by the Kent Youth League at their awards evening at Lordswood Sports Club at the end of June. Harry's 36 league and 15 cup goals took him to the overall league scorer title, an amazing achievement. That is over 200 teams spread over 19 divisions!

Top scorer in the U13 North division was Keyondre Graham ("Keke") of Welling United with 30 goals. This season he has signed for FOBG, a real coup for managers Michael Clark and Seb Favata. Michael told us "Hopefully they form a great partnership and repeat their great achievements this season!!".

FOBG Football Club AGM - Monday 19 August

PROPOSED TEAM MANAGERS 2024-25
First Eleven: Luke Johnson (Assistants: Tom Jewers and Paul Eddleston)
Second Eleven: Jez Allen
Sunday Eleven: Vince Wray 
Sunday Second Eleven: Dan Penn 
Saturday Vets: Ben Tomkins 
Red Vets: Danny Mann 
Yellow Vets: George Kleanthous
Under 14 Boys: Michael Clark and Seb Favata
Under 12 Mustangs: Paul Embleton, Jon Gasson and Neil Pearce
Under 9 Stallions: Paul Raggett
Under 8 Foals: Joff Excell and Jack Kehoe

Open trials for Under 9s 2024-25

We are recruiting for next season's Under 9 squad.  If you are interested please email the club at juniors@fobgfc.org.

Got an injury or niggle?

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Jon W Sports Injury is a leading sports injury clinic who work with many clubs in the area offering expert injury assessment, treatment and football-based rehabilitation programs for the effective recovery of all sports injuries.

Their therapists have worked and at professional and semi-professional football level. All Guild players receive £5 off every treatment session with them. More information can be seen on their website www.jonwsportsinjury.co.uk but please feel free to contact them to discuss any needs.

They have an app which can help you schedule appointments quickly, view your existing appointments, see your rehabilitation programmes and see all of their videos to help you with pain. All in one FREE app. Click here to download it. They also have an online chat facility on their website, promising to reply to any queries within an hour.

Jon W Sports Injury has clinics in Orpington and Bromley (Hayes). They also provide virtual clinics and have a wealth of information on their website. They operate flexible working hours to allow for after school/work appointments. They can be contacted at jonwsportsinjury@hotmail.co.uk or on 07825 835305.

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