HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

A team running before the City of Football became involved with football at all levels in Nottingham were asked to represent Notts County by Notts FA in the annual EFL Trust Cup. This request changed through the Notts FA to representing Mansfield Town due to the lack of proactive presence from Notts County. Winning the Regional Finals for Mansfield Town against a Nottingham Forest Team. This proved to be the catalyst for Football in the Community at Mansfield to start their own Walking Football Programme. The following year I met with Ian Richardson who agreed with our request to represent Notts County in the same competition. By then the constituted Club 2015 whose players were involved in this project by the EFL Trust had the beginnings of a relationship with Notts County through Ian Richardson at Football in the Community. We won the Area Finals again in 2017 this time representing Notts County a team closer to our hearts. We went on to represent them the following year. To represent the Club further I signed Voluntary Forms suggested by Ian Richardson. This kept an official recognition until Ian left and the Club ran out of the capacity to continue running under the same conditions. It was suggested at a meeting between myself, Charlie Shaw, Steven Chamberlain and Emma Trent and Sam Crawford from the Foundation that we continue using the name through the supporters and we became Notts County Supporters Walking Football Programme with no authentic association until such time capacity allowed. in 2019 we were Co-Founders of the Midlands Friendly League with Nottingham Forest and Derby County, this grew with the addition of Leicester City, Lincoln City and Doncaster Rovers representations. A few weeks before Covid struck we started a session at Chilwell Olympia with Charley Shaw, Leon Black, Alan Hodgkinson, Takis Antonopoulos, as the main attendants. After the first lockdown ended the session began to grow. We were still playing in the Friendly League and friendly games against other Community Trust Teams. The group was now at a stage where kits for various age groups and varying sizes were needed. Funds for these were raised by private donations from myself and funds raised from on line business and  some session fees used as a contribution. In 2021 Steven Chamberlain was offered and took management of the over 50's and 60's so I could concentrate on the over 65's. Kits were made available for him so he could organise without involving me unless necessary. He entered two teams in the East of England League which he pulled out of half way through. The Winter League I set up in 2022 and the Programme came to an abrupt end in 2023 when Steven Chamberlain and others decided to form a committee destroy the Notts County programme and become a Private Club now under the name Exiles. As of today 10th of April 2023 I can continue the loose conditions with Notts County as a Walking Football Programme, now under the name Notts County Football Community Independent Walking Football Programme. 

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Derek Hattersley