By Simon Parkinson

SEVERN Valley Youth League’s elated chairman Ken Fagan admitted having his organisation nominated for a Gloucestershire FA Community Award had come as a “complete surprise” – let alone winning it!

The league recently completed a successful first season in business following the brave decision taken in March 2016 to merge the Gloucester Youth and Stroud Youth leagues, in order to form a “bigger and better football experience” for children and young adults between the under-8 and under-16 age brackets.

That maiden operation culminated in Severn Valley picking up the GFA Charter Standard League of the Year accolade at the county association’s annual community prize-giving function, which was this year staged at Bristol Golf Club.

Fagan was there to receive the award on behalf of his comrades and he beamed: “We’re very, very pleased, especially given it’s the first year we’ve been running.

“A lot of hard work has been put in by the ten of us on our new committee and it’s testament to what we do that we’ve been acknowledged in this way.

“Receiving a letter from the GFA in the first place to say we’d been nominated for the award was a surprise, so to actually win that category when there are so many other youth leagues in the county is fantastic and unexpected.”

Severn Valley Youth League edged out Hanham Minor League into a runner-up spot and Fagan said: “They are such a well-established and well-run league and they must be congratulated too for being highly-commended in our Charter Standard League section.

“We want to keep moving forward now and we’re planning to introduce an under-18 division the year after next. It would be nice also to see a couple more fresh faces on our committee, preferably some younger ones!”

Since the alliance was finalised last spring, with Gloucestershire FA acting as a driving force and go-between, some 2,100 youngsters have embroiled themselves in friendly and competitive action across an impressive 18 divisions.

In the meantime it’s business as usual for the Severn Valley Youth League’s collection of volunteers, while their chairman Fagan, who held a similar post with the now-defunct Gloucester Youth League, expressed “encouragement and satisfaction” at the way the amalgamation had already paid off.

“It’s all been pretty good,” he enthused. “We doubled everything overnight when we joined the two leagues together and although there has been the odd inevitable hiccup administration wise, things have pretty much gone to plan.

“It was a Gloucestershire FA concept; they approached me to ask whether there might be merit in the idea and we decided to be daft and try and get everything in place within two-and-a-half months of devising a plan!

“We can give ourselves a pat on the back, especially given the short timescale we gave ourselves to get it all together, and we’re grateful to our committee members and our member clubs who run a good ship.”

Any teams wishing to sign up to the Severn Valley Youth League can contact Ken Fagan by emailing him at: a17kjf@yahoo.co.uk