After last years highly successful Sponsored Run, Walk & Cycle the club has decided to try something new this year in the hope that we can provide the opportunity for more people to get involved.

We have enlisted the help of an organisation know as “Hotshots” who are run by Motherwell coach Bobby Jenks. There will be 3 main activities on the day.

 Hotshot – 3 chances to have your shooting recorded by the speed gun to be “Hotshot”

Penalty King – 3 chances to beat the goalie and compete to be “Penalty King”

X Bar Challenge – 3 Chances to hit the X Bar and compete to be “X Bar King”

 In addition there will be the usual favourites such as the raffle and bottle shoot. We need donations for the Raffle so please let your team coach know what you can bring.

The aim of the sponsored activity is to raise funds to provide every player within the club with a full North Kelvin United training kit and tracksuit for next season. The club have been given the opportunity to partner up with the European “Respect” sports organisation that will provide the kit.

In order to achieve this ambitious target we need to raise a minimum of £30 per youth team player and £50 for adult players!

 To help us reach this target everyone will have the chance to take part. Players, Mums and Dads, Brothers and Sisters and other friends and family members will be given a sponsor sheet prior to the event.

 The feedback we get from parents time and again is that they would like the players to have more club kit, in particular tracksuits so here is our chance to achieve that goal.

But to achieve it, we need everyone’s help. So please get your sponsor sheets from your team coach or download them from our website at www.NGFDG.co.uk .

At the end of the afternoon we will make our awards to all of the players who have contributed over the season and we hope to have a celebrity from the football world in the club to present the awards.

 If you have any questions or would like additional sponsor sheets speak to your team coach or email the club at info@ngfdg.co.uk.

The plan thereafter is to watch the Scottish Cup Final and the for those with the stamina, the Champions league final too.

Paul Smith is buying the drinks I am reliably informed!

An injury sustained in only his 3rd game for the club.

We wish Ross well with his surgery and recovery.

The club lottery which has been going on all season but without a winner has finally been won by Michelle Mitchell who is a regular buyer on Craig Cousar’s weekly lottery sheet.

The jackpot of £1300 is the highest ever I believe in a very successful lottery which the club has run for several years and is without doubt the main contributor to our fundraising.

Keep an eye on the website for a photo of the winner with a crisp new cheque.

As well as being a novel fundraiser it offers the chance for everyone to get involved; players, parents, pals, siblings and even grandparents!!

We will be issuing letters detailing the plans for the day along with sponsor sheets over the next 2 weeks.

In addition we had a good look at kit samples from a new supplier. An excellent range of training kit and tracksuits etc was on show and we have a great plan to allow us to hopefully outfit every club member next season.

So look out for your letter and keep an eye on the website for more details.

Between work or likewise committments and injuries which tend to pile up at this time of the season we are up against it.

Neverthless some of the guys have made a huge effort to be available for all of the games. Which is great credit to them. Unfortunately others cannot claim the same.

So, well done to those guys whose appetite and committment to play football for their club and their team mates is exactly what we need!

Midweek games are all good and well and understandably needed but don’t always make sense. For instance, with the 1st team having five games left to play it looks like we will be struggling to get more than one game on a Saturday.

Clearly this makes things harder to organise and not good for sponsors who are expecting to see players using their social club bar on a Saturday.

Anyway, with our German friends coming to play us in June, and plans for next season taking shape we will continue to offer football on a Saturday. So bounce games, like the one we had on Saturday, will continue to take place right through to June and most likely throughout the Summer too.

So for the 2nd time that we have been promoted we have been relegated after just one season. Its fair to say that this has been the most difficult season of all, including our 1st season and lessons have been learned.

So! no wallowing in pity and complaining. We know where we are, where we will be next season and what we need to do.

Planning for next season has already started and the new plan starts tomorrow. There will be some changes, there needs to be, but after a season of so much change maybe the 1st thing to aim for is stability!

while on holiday last week i managed to catch the arsenal vs man city game which was one by a simple enough goal by arteta. it was however easily avoidable.

if lescott ( a £20m defender) had stuck to the basics of defending he would have blocked the shot.

the simplest way to coach young players to defend is to tell them always to have their body between the ball and the goal and always close the attackers down.

if lescott had kept it simple his team would have gained a vital away point.

all players at all levels can do a good job by simply sticking to the basics.