The government road map out of lockdown contains key dates for the removal of covid restrictions. A key date in the roadmap for Broomwood Football Club is 29th March which is currently the date at which grassroots sport will be permitted and BFC will return for our young footballers. A day to look forward to!
What follows is an update with some key information but please bear in mind that this is subject to change given the dates are determined by guidance from the government and FA . As always we will follow the government and FA guidance strictly and do all we can to ensure we provide a safe environment for the children to play football.
Junior and Academy sections – Saturdays
The junior section will return on Saturday 3rd April at 10.30am with the academy resuming at 12 noon. Both will be on Wandsworth Common in the usual place.
We are yet to see any revised guidance from the FA on the rules relating to bubbles, hygiene or social distancing but we are assuming the guidance and format we adhered to from September to December will apply. That will involve taking a register, limited mixing and a focus on hygiene etc
Due to the lockdown closures and the amount of missed football the season will be extended from the usual mid-May end to the end of June.
The season will now end on Saturday 26th June and there will be football every Saturday regardless of Easter and half term school holidays.
We hope to end the season with our end of season festival (likely to be in a changed format) as long as it complies with government restrictions and we we think it is a safe and responsible event to hold.
League section
Matches for league teams will resume on Saturday 10th April for the CGL and LCSYFL and Sunday 4th Apri for the Tandridge league with midweek training resuming from 29th March onwards. Players should check with their coaches for the dates of matches and training.
The LCYSFL, the CGL and Tandridge leagues are all looking to extend the season to the end of June so with luck there will be lots of matches for all our teams.
Pitch Availability
You may have noticed that the football pitches across Wandsworth Common have had their goalposts removed. This is a borough-wide move from Wandsworth Council to allow the pitches to be used for other sports and to allow maintenance to take place.
Given the amount of football that the children have missed this season everyone at BFC is frustrated that goalposts are down and pitches have been made unavailable at almost the exact same time that grassroots football can resume. As a club we are respectful of other sport users and the competing demands that the council must balance but it is still a big disappointment.
Our junior and academy section will be unaffected as they do not use the posts and should continue as normal.
For our league teams, to ensure they can still play home matches, we have been working hard to book other pitches outside the borough for “home” matches.
We have also written to the council respectfully asking them to reconsider their decision and re-erect the posts.
If anyone would like to support us in this please feel free to email or call your local representatives or any contacts you have at the council pleading our case. We do not want to make this issue a bitter argument between us and the council. We respect the hard work and the often financially constrained decisions that have to be made. So if you do contact the council to make the case for football, please make clear you are doing this in a personal capacity and not on behalf of the club and of course please ensure this is done respectfully.
