Oxfordshire Football Association acknowledged the hard work, dedication and passion of a handful of the county’s grassroots football workforce at its prestigious FA and McDonald’s Grassroots Football Awards ceremony, hosted at Oxford United’s Kassam Stadium on Friday 13 September.

On the night, special guest Chris Powell, the former Charlton Athletic and England international full-back and current England senior men’s coach, presented recipients of the accolades with their awards, in addition to taking part in a Q&A session with those in attendance. 

Around 100 people representing clubs, leagues, volunteers and officials from within Oxfordshire grassroots football came together to celebrate the accomplishments of the winners, with the evening overall a celebration of a fantastic season of the game within the county.

Former Charlton, West Ham United, Watford and Derby County defender, Chris Powell, said: “The importance of grassroots football at all levels can’t be stressed enough. Having enjoyed grassroots football myself ahead of joining my first professional club – and now seeing how much of an impact it’s having on my children, who love playing the game – events like this highlight the incredible people that give up so much time and energy to make the game what it is. 

“Listening to some of the stories behind the winners, Oxfordshire is very lucky to have people like them working to develop football and I’m sure there are many more that weren’t acknowledged at the event that are just as dedicated. It was a pleasure to meet the winners and I wish everybody involved in grassroots football in Oxfordshire a very successful season.” 

James Shiplee, Football Development Officer at Oxfordshire FA, said: “Friday evening provided another great night for us to celebrate the accomplishments of just a few of the volunteers in grassroots football in Oxfordshire. We’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of the volunteers in the county who give countless hours to make the game what it is and look forward to hearing about continued achievements come next year’s awards ceremony.”

The list of winners on the evening is as follows:

Groundsman of the Year – Nick Truman (Carterton Football Club)
Grounds Team of the Year – John Tuddenham (Thame Football Partnership)
Doug Watts Young Referee of the Year – Andrew Hunt
The Respect Award – Neil Allan (Easington Sports Football Club)
Supporter of the Year – Neil Alcroft (Tower Hill Football Club)
Community Project of the Year – Oxford City Casuals
Outstanding Contribution to Grassroots Football – Chris Webb (Oxford Mail Girls’ Football League)
Coach of the Year – Chris Wales (Bicester Town Colts)
Charter Standard Club of the Year – Easington Sports Football Club
Charter Standard League of the Year – The BOBi League
Volunteer of the Year – Steve Cooper – (Oxford Mail Girls’ Football League)
Outstanding Contribution to Grassroots Football – Jamie Hunter (Easington Sports Football Club)

Congratulations to all our winners.