Last Christmas, Gift of Kit with partners, Deliveroo, wanted to say a big thank you to grassroots football volunteers. We asked clubs to nominate someone for their chance to win an amazing range of festive prizes.
We recognise the immense effort that goes into keeping grassroots sport alive from an army of millions of volunteers up and down the country. These volunteers are the heartbeat of every sports club and without them, community sport would not exist. Often working in the shadows away from the limelight, seldom do they get the recognition they deserve.
We wanted to give some volunteers a deserved moment in the spotlight. We asked clubs to nominate one of their volunteers to be a “Deliveroo Grassroots Hero” with the chance to win prizes including a padded Nike jacket, a festive hamper and some vouchers.
The winners
We randomly selected 5 runners up and a 1st prize winner. We spent some time chatting to our winner and Grassroots Hero, Paul Godfrey. Paul runs Match of The Dads, a fantastic club providing sport for Dads who benefit hugely from the social and health benefits of football.
Q. Paul, tell us about Match of the dads?
Match of the Dads is a friendly 5 a side football league for dads in and around Norwich. We also have a set up in Flintshire, North Wales too. We formed in April 2017 and have gone from strength to strength.
Q. Where do you play and in which league/format?
We play at the FDC in Norwich, and have our own 12 tea, 5 a side league.
Q. What was the main goal in forming Match of the dads?
The driver behind Match of the Dads was to give dads a ‘collective’ so they could get together, get fit and make new friends. As part of this, we encourage positive mental well-being and we raise money for Campaign Against Living Miserably, a men’s mental health and suicide prevention charity.
Q. Does MOTD support any charities?
We do, we work closely with and provide fundraising and awareness support to Campaign Against Living Miserably (CALM).
You can see the CALM website HERE
Q. How many players/members do you have?
We have 84 players in our 12 teams and roughly 50 reserves. We’ve gone from 3 teams to 12 teams in 3 years, and we will be looking to expand again in future.
Q. How has a free sponsored kit from Gift of Kit helped you and what does it mean to have this support?
The Deliveroo kit has given the teams an ‘identity’. Being able to pull the shirt on before a match reminds us why we are there and of the support to CALM and all the dads that are in the group.
Gift of Kit is a fantastic concept. So many teams are unable to afford kit of their own, and it makes such a difference to grassroots teams across a variety of sports.
I am humbled, and proud, to have won volunteer of the year award. Without each of the dads involved, Match of the Dads wouldn’t exist, so this is for them really.
