Tring Athletic vs Dunstable Town

Official Programme

Good afternoon & welcome to the Grass Roots Stadium for the visit of Dunstable Town. We welcome their players, officials and supporters and wish them a safe journey home afterwards.

Town came off better earlier in the season with a 1-0 victory here but we’ll be looking to bounce back today especially with three home wins on the bounce. Our visitors sit three points below us in the table but do have six games in hand! We will lock horns again on 3rd December at Creasey Park in the FA Vase 3rd Round.

This afternoon’s match sponsor is The Cook Partnership. See page 3 for more information & just click on their advert or logo on the front cover to take you to their website.

We still have match sponsorship availability for the remaining games this season so please speak to Graham Bright if you are interested.

If you are able to volunteer for the club on a regular basis or even just occasionally please speak to a committee member. We are always grateful for extra support.

This is the third season of producing online only programmes. If you click on any of the logos or adverts it should direct you straight to our sponsors websites. This also means we can bring you features such as match highlights at the click of a button.

Today’s programme includes

• Page 5 - A selection of items on show from our club shop

• Page 20 — Today’s match squads

• Page 22-24—Introducing our opponents

• Page 26 The latest winners on the 100 club. You can join for just £1 a week.

• As always keep an eye on our website for all the latest information, fixtures and results.

The Cook Partnership

Ryan Earle, 17 has been a Tring Athletic FC youth player for 3 years and also attends Ben Herd football academy so has links with Hertford Town FC. He was diagnosed with Acute myeloid leukaemia last week and is now at UCL hospital undergoing treatment.

Ryan began this pre-season training with our first team, a testament to how well he is developing as a player with a very bright future. A few weeks ago Ryan took a knock to his head during an u18 friendly game against Leverstock Green FC, he had a small lump and also had a dizzy spell and to be on the safe side he attended where he was advised the lump was a cyst. A couple of weeks later we were playing Balham FC in the FA youth cup and Ryan felt unwell during the day and so presented himself at A&E where he collapsed.

Ryan was admitted and tests would reveal he has Acute myeloid leukaemia & is now receiving his treatment at UCL hospital in London. All those who know or have have met Ryan know what a infectious joker he is, full of life and always laughing. The diagnosis has come as a huge shock to us all but no more so than for Ryan's family. We have started this page to allow people to donate. The aim being to take some of the families financial stresses away so they can concentrate on supporting Ryan as he faces 6 months of treatment to overcome this diagnosis. The family will have huge expenditure with travel, accommodation, food amongst other things on top of keeping the home going. If you can help in anyway no matter how small you will make a huge difference in helping to concentrate on getting Ryan better and back home

Officials

Life President Mick Eldridge BEM

Life Vice Presidents David Evans MBE, Barry Johnson, Jean & Les Robins, Ralph Griffiths, Harry Bowden, Pete Stillwell, Alan Foskett, Pete Oakley, Keith Hamilton

Chairman Bob Winter

Vice Chairman

Tony Stedman & Mark Weston Hon. Secretary David Blair Hon. Treasurer Tony Stedman

Commercial Manager Graham Bright Match Secretary South Midlands & Herts Snr Tony Stedman Registration Secretary Trevor Langley Club Welfare Officer Kirstie McNeil

First Team Manager Ryan Sturges

First Team Assistant Manager Lee Groves

First Team Coaches Mick Vipond

First Team Technical Advisor Ian Richardson

Goalkeeping coach Gary Looker

Reserve Team Management Alex Payne, Stuart Stedman TAFC Zebras

Under 18' Management David Lawless

Under 17's Management Sports Physio Hannah Childs Football Co-Ordinator Vacant Press Officer Vacant

Website Keith Eldridge / Colin Sturges Social Media Keith Eldridge , Terry Adams Programme Editor Keith Eldridge

Groundsman Darrell Bodimeade Facilities Manager David Whicker

Membership Secretary Graham Bright Catering Vacant Bar Manager Stefan Drumea

Committee Members

Bob Winter (Chairman) Tony Stedman, Ian Butler, Neil Foskett, Graham Bright, David Blair, Mark Weston, Keith Eldridge, Andy Ayres., David Whicker

Pendley Day Nursery is a brand new nursery set in a unique setting in the heart of Tring, and provides quality childcare and development opportunities for children aged 6 months - 5 years. We have created a premier nursery, which will provide a fantastic experience for your child to enable them to 'Grow, Learn & Develop'. Just read our TESTIMONALS page to see the lovely things parents are saying about us.

The nursery has both expansive indoor and outdoor space, and provides an ideal environment for children to learn and play in a safe and secure environment.

Pendley Day Nursery is led and managed by leading childcare practitioner Natasha Young, who is also part owner of the nursery.

Natasha is Level 6 qualified and she and her team will provide the highest of quality care and development opportunities for your child. We will ensure that your child's best interest are at the heart of everything we do. We have invested significantly in the setting and, with lots of brand new equipment and toys, we offer the highest of standards throughout.

Our excellent facilities include:

• Fully trained, dedicated staff – many at level 3 and above

• Fully equipped kitchen and trained cooks (hot lunch, tea and snacks)

• Large play areas, inside and out

• Large, safe front car park for easy drop off and collection

• Open 8.00 18.00, Monday Friday (51 weeks)

• Flexible hours (mornings or afternoons)

• Dedicated to children 6 months 5 years

The nursery is run by local owners who, through their team, are committed to providing stimulating activities in a caring environment, promoting all aspects of children’s development.

PREM 02/08/22 19:45 Tring Athletic 2-1 Ardley United

FAC 06/08/22 15:00 Roman Glass St George 3-1 Tring Athletic

PREM 13/08/22 15:00 Dunstable Town 2-2 Tring Athletic

PREM 16/08/22 19:45 Tring Athletic 1-0 Colney Heath

PREM 20/08/22 15:00 Arlesey Town 1-1 Tring Athletic

PREM 27/08/22 15:00 St Panteleimon 2-1 Tring Athletic

PREM 03/09/22 15:00 Tring Athletic 4-1 Biggleswade

PREM 10/09/22 15:00 Hoddesdon Town 0-0 Tring Athletic

PREM 13/09/22 19:45 Tring Athletic 0-2 Stotfold

PREM 17/09/22 15:00 Crawley Green 4-0 Tring Athletic

PREM 01/10/22 15:00 Tring Athletic 4-1 Baldock Town

PREM 08/10/22 15:00 Aylesbury Vale Dynamos 1-1 Tring Athletic

PREM 11/10/22 19:45 Tring Athletic 2-3 Risborough Rangers

PREM 15/10/22 15:00 Potton United 3-0 Tring Athletic

PREM 1/11/22 15:00 Cockfosters 6-1 Tring Athletic

PREM 05/11/22 15:00 Tring Athletic 3-0 Arlesey Town

PREM 19/11/22 15:00 Tring Athletic VS Dunstable Town

PREM 22/11/22 19:45 Colney Heath VS Tring Athletic

PREM 03/12/22 15:00 Tring Athletic VS St Panteleimon

PREM 10/12/22 15:00 Harpenden Town VS Tring Athletic

PREM 17/12/22 15:00 Tring Athletic VS Harpenden Town

PREM 27/12/22 15:00 Tring Athletic VS Leverstock Green

PREM 02/01/23 15:00 London Colney VS Tring Athletic

PREM 07/01/23 15:00 Stotfold VS Tring Athletic

PREM 14/01/23 15:00 Tring Athletic VS Hoddesdon Town

PREM 21/01/23 15:00 Biggleswade United VS Tring Athletic

PREM 18/02/23 15:00 Tring Athletic VS Leighton Town

PREM 25/02/23 15:00 Tring Athletic VS Cockfosters

PREM 04/03/23 15:00 Shefford Town & Campton VS Tring Athletic

PREM 11/03/23 15:00 Tring Athletic VS Potton United

PREM 18/03/23 15:00 Baldock Town VS Tring Athletic

PREM 25/03/23 15:00 Tring Athletic

PREM 01/04/23 15:00 Ardley United

PREM 08/04/23 15:00 Tring Athletic

PREM 10/04/23 15:00 Leverstock

PREM 15/04/23 15:00 Tring Athletic

PREM 22/04/23 15:00 Risborough Rangers

Today

s Visitors

IMPROVING THE LIVES OF OTHERS. DUNSTABLE TOWN FC BECOME A COMMUNITY BENEFIT SOCIETY.

Dunstable Town FC have an interesting history. I think that’s the polite way of putting it. Formed in 1883 the Club had several homes before finding permanent residency at Creasey Park in the post-war years.

Those of a certain vintage may have witnessed the mercurial magic of George Best when he graced the hallowed turf of Creasey Park in 1974, playing three times for the Blues as a favour to his old Manchester United teammate, Barry Fry, who was the Club’s Manager. Fry, in his first job in football management went on to manage Barnet, Birmingham City & Peterborough Utd, where he is Director of Football.

The BBC covered the story of how George Best came to play for Dunstable Town on its website in May to mark what would have been Best’s 75th birthday. But Best hasn’t been the only former International to wear the Club’s colours, former England player Jeff Astle scored 34 times for the Blues in the 1974 -75 season.

Kerry Dixon is another former England International who started his career at Dunstable Town, before going on to play for Reading & then heading to the bright lights of London’s Kings Road, where he scored 193 times for Chelsea making him the Club’s all time third most prolific goal scorer. More recently, Luton Town player Peter Kioso played for the Club as an 18 year old in the 2017 -18 season, and at the end of last season another 18-year-old, Eric Ameyaw left the Club to sign for Fulham. But, to misquote Freddie Mercury, it hasn’t always been a “bed of roses and a pleasure cruise”. Tales of money in brown envelopes, dodgy dealings and financial mismanagement have also seen the Club lurch from peak to trough and back again on too many occasions causing the Club to go out of business for four years in the mid to late 1990’s and a partial shut down in the 1970’s. Us football fans, are, by and large, masochists. We derive a perverse sense of pleasure from following our teams’ (mis)fortunes, getting battered by the elements on uncovered terraces, travelling long distances on bitterly cold Tuesday nights to see our teams succumb to a penalty from a blatant dive in the last minute of stoppage time. And because we’re masochists and creatures of habit we do it every season.

But we at least have the certainty that our Club will be still in existence for us to experience this self inflicted pain and punishment we secretly enjoy. But try asking the fans of Macclesfield, Bury, and North Ferriby who have all seen their Clubs fold recently due to the financial pressures of boom and bust football economics, about the certainty of where they’ll be at 3pm on a Saturday afternoon.

Football isn’t all about success no matter how much we aspire to achieve it. For every Club that finishes top of the league, another Club has to finish bottom.

The pressure to achieve success at all costs comes at too high a price for many Clubs. As our own experience in the 1970’s and 1990’s showed, we’ve also ridden the football financial rollercoaster and fallen from grace in so doing.

The global Covid pandemic wrought havoc and despair to the lives of millions. While the nation mourned the lives of countless thousands, many of the Club’s commercial sponsors saw their own businesses and livelihoods severely affected by lockdowns and the cessation of normal trading.

Faced with a loss of nearly half its income the Club had to fold its Cup winning Development Team, circle the wagons and concentrate on keeping just one senior team playing last season. Dunstable Town became managed by the Club’s fans in 2017. Fan ownership is a relatively recent concept of running a football Club. Many clubs, even at non league level, rely heavily on the generosity of individual donors to keep their clubs afloat, or own their own facilities and can supplement match day income by hiring out their facilities to community groups, or running popular social events from their clubhouses.

As tenants of the Council and with no individual benefactors that is simply not an option for Dunstable Town FC. Therefore, in order to protect the Club’s history and ensure a sustainable future we began talks with the Football Supporters’ Association earlier this year and started the new season as a Community Benefit Society (CBS)

Regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, the Club operates as a social enterprise combining both traditional football activities with working in our local communities on improving the mental and physical health and well being of individuals. Regulars on match-days at Creasey Park may not notice much of a difference. It’s during the week from Monday through to Friday that being a CBS club starts to do things very differently. Our links with NHS groups, charities and community groups, and the range of free activities we provide, is what sets us apart from 99.9% of every other FA affiliated club up and down the country.

The Club has been fortunate over the past few seasons to have developed a strong relationship with Mind BLMK (Beds, Luton and Milton Keynes) and for the past three seasons have had the Mind BLMK logo on the front of the playing kit. There is ample anecdotal evidence to suggest that this move encouraged and empowered many people to seek help for emotional and psychological problems they were facing from both statutory and non statutory mental health services. With Mind BLMK as a strategic partner the Club has worked on initiatives to actively promote better mental health through football and exercise. We are also part of the CALM Collective and work in support of CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably) More recently we have established links with Minds2gether, a mental health peer support group in Dunstable.

A little known fact. Endorphins are the body’s own natural anti depressants and are released by the brain when you exercise. Exercise is not just good for your heart and lungs, it’s also good for your mental well being and helps you feel better in yourself.

With Mind BLMK as a strategic partner the Club has worked on initiatives to actively promote better mental health through football and exercise.

We are also part of the CALM Collective and work in support of CALM (Campaign Against Living Miserably) More recently we have established links with Minds2gether, a mental health peer support group in Dunstable.

A little known fact. Endorphins are the body’s own natural anti depressants and are released by the brain when you exercise. Exercise is not just good for your heart and lungs, it’s also good for your mental well being and helps you feel better in yourself.

All of the services we offer are free to join and participate in. We provide weekly Walking Football groups, a Walking groups and a weekly Support group for socially isolated and lonely people which meets at The Glider public house every Monday.

Our intention is to help people who want to lose weight, lower blood pressure readings and blood sugar levels by taking part in these groups. Additionally, they’re a huge amount of fun as heydays are re lived and glory years re enacted, complete with bad backs and dodgy knees.

We have also established links with the local NHS Community Mental Health team and will be offering free coaching sessions and 5 a side games for service users in recovery. We have the invaluable support of our partners at DKD Coaching who provide UEFA B coaches

All very noble and worthwhile you may say, but how does this benefit the Club’s supporters? The answer is very simple. Supporters, and members of the general public, can become owners of Dunstable Town FC. By simply purchasing a maximum of one share per person a supporter automatically becomes an owner of Dunstable Town FC. It’s a scheme that has been championed by League clubs like AFC Wimbledon, Newport County, and Exeter City, and non-league clubs such as AFC Rushden & Diamonds, Lewes FC and FC United of Manchester. It is the ultimate manifestation of fan power and the pinnacle of supporter commitment to become an owner of the Club you support.

It means that you don’t have to be the owner of an oil well or a gas field to own your own football club, you can be like 1,600 people who own Lewes FC or 800 who own AFC Rushden & Diamonds, receive your owner’s share certificate and be part of the Club that is a benefit to the community.

Owners enjoy benefits from the Club’s Blue Card, shop and save discount scheme, receive preferential rates from Club partners in the health and leisure sector, the Club’s own Nike kit supplier and a growing number of shops and traders in the town, keen to do their bit and show support for the Club with a Purpose. For details on how to own your local club, please visit our website; www.dunstabletownfc.co.uk/ownership

And if that wasn’t enough, owners automatically get voting rights to elect the Club’s Board of Directors every year, choose new kit and help shape the future course of the Club.

TAFC 3-1 Buntingford Town Click

on the image below to see match highlights from last season

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BLACK—£20 (£10 cons) Club membership and 10% discount at the bar. Click on the Gold Card below to go to our membership page & application form

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