CLUB DIRECTORY & OFFICALS
Stowmarket Community Sports and Social Club CIC Bury Road, Stowmarket, Suffolk, IP14 1JQ 01449 612533
info@stowmarkettownfc.co.uk stowmarkettownfc.co.uk twitter.com/stowtownfc instagram..com/stowtownfc facebook.com/stowmarkettownfc
Eastern Counties League First Division Winners: 2016-17
Suffolk Premier Cup Winners: 1962-63, 1976-77, 1985-86, 1990-91
Suffolk Senior Cup Winners: 1930-31, 1932-33, 1933-34, 1950-51, 1951-52, 1957-58, 1961-62, 1964-65, 2006-07
Suffolk Junior Cup Winners:
1907-08
Essex & Suffolk Border League Winners:
1950-51
Essex & Suffolk Border League Cup Winners: 1950-51, 1951-52, 1970-71, 1991-92, 1994-95
Thurlow Nunn Reserve League Winners:
2018/19
CHAIRMAN: Kevin Blundell
VICE-CHAIRMAN: Ian Moyes
DIRECTORS:
Nigel Jarvis, (Director Infrastructure) Doug French (Commercial Director) Paul Rudland (Director of Operations)
MANAGER: Chris Casement
ASSISTANT MANAGER: Richard Wilkins
GOALKEEPING COACH: Nathan Munson
RESERVES MANAGER: Craig Brown
UNDER-18’S MANAGER: Liam Hawkins
UNDER-18’S ASSISTANT MANAGERS: Ellis Smith
Stowmarket Town Football Club is thrilled to introduce Chris Casement as the club’s new manager/player, with a vast array of experience and achievements garnered from his 18 years in football, both as a professional footballer and coach, Chris is set to bring a new level of success to the club.
With over 450 senior games under his belt, Chris has a proven track record of success on the pitch. He played a key role in leading Wycombe Wanderers to promotion to EFL League 1 in the 08/09 season and won six League titles with Linfield FC in Northern Ireland. Additionally, he was a member of the Ipswich Town FC team that lifted the FA Youth Cup in 2005. He also boasts international experience, having represented Northern Ireland at the U17, U19, U21, and senior level.
As a coach, Chris has eight years of experience in Northern Ireland and England, working with age groups from U8s to U18s. He has also worked as Head Recruitment Officer for Suffolk, Norfolk & Cambridgeshire and as a Youth Coach at Ipswich Town FC.
Chris passion for the game, combined with his extensive experience, has already made him a pivotal part of Stowmarket Town’s success in recent seasons as a player. Chris would like to express his excitement about this new opportunity, stating,
“First of all I’m delighted & excited to be the new manager of Stowmarket Town FC. It’s something I’ve been working towards for a while now, with my playing years catching up on me. I’d like to thank Kev & the rest of the board for showing great faith in me as a young manager to take the club forward. I’m looking forward to working with a great group of players to see what can be achieved”
The board of directors would like to extend a massive thank you to Wilks and Munno for stepping up in the interim position and helping to guide the club through a difficult period. Their dedication and hard work has not gone unnoticed, and they will continue to play a vital role at Stowmarket Town Football Club. With the combined experience and enthusiasm of Chris, Wilks, and Munno.
The club is poised for a bright future. Best of luck to Chris as he takes us forward!
SOMETHING I’VE BEEN WORKING TOWARDS FOR A WHILE NOW, WITH MY PLAYING YEARS CATCHING UP ON ME.
Stowmarket Town FC is proud to announce the recent progress of its young players in the first team. Over the past few weeks, we’ve seen a number of our reserves players step up and make meaningful contributions to the first team, showcasing the bright future that lies ahead for our club.
Kieran Morley, a talented midfielder/striker and local Stowmarket boy, has already made a significant impact with 7 goals in 10 games for our reserves squad. Kieran, who is related to one of our own, Tony Morley, has been called up to the first team on several occasions and is eagerly waiting for the opportunity to showcase his talent and replicate his form in the first team.
In his own words, “It’s been an honour to be involved with the first team again all these years after last being with them! To be called up again a decade later is a dream come true. As a Stowmarket boy through and through, I’m relishing the chance and can’t wait to get going.” We’re confident that Kieran has a bright future ahead of him and believe that he will continue to make a positive impact.
Joel Simmons, another promising young player, has shown great potential in both the reserves and first team. Craig Brown (Jimmy), our Reserves Team manager says, Joel is “my most consistent player in my squad.” Jimmy also praised Joel’s first team contributions, noting that “he has great feet and low centre of gravity, which makes him a valuable asset on the pitch.”
Dan Knights, a local left-back, has been called up to the first team and is eager to make an impression. With his talent and commitment, we’re confident that he has a bright future ahead of him.
In addition to our reserves players, we’re thrilled to see two U18 players from Liam Hawkins’ team called up to the first team.
We’re very excited for the future of Zach Gayfer, who, at only 16 years old, was named Man of the Match on his full debut against Hullbridge. His hard work and dedication have earned him a two-week trial with Ipswich Town, which is a testament to his exceptional talent and potential. It’s remarkable that after just one game for our first team, Zach has been given such a great opportunity, and we’re excited to see how he continues to progress.
Oliver Okeh is another young player who has been called up by Chris Casement for the Gorleston match. While he hasn’t played for the first team yet, it’s a great sign that Chris is using young players and giving them opportunities to develop.
As we enter a new era, we’re excited to see the progress of our young players and reserves squad in the first team. At Stowmarket Town FC, we’re committed to investing in the future of our club by turning to our reserves and youth. We believe in supporting and nurturing our young talent to bring success to Stowmarket Town FC. Let’s continue to support our young players as they make a positive impact at our club.
Abuse in all sport has now become a noticeably massive thing and especially in football. Since the advent of that day a year ago when some very high-profile players told their very distressing stories live on the Victoria Derbyshire show and subsequently brought about the advent and birth of the wonderful organisation The Offside Trust who have done amazing work with no funding from The Football association at all to help them and a very minimal amount from the PFA. Their help has given me the strength to deal with what happened to me all those years ago as it did to them.
As a young child I wanted nothing more than to watch football, play football and be a professional footballer. My uncle used to take me to watch Luton Town from the age of seven onwards at first my uncle was wonderful nothing was too much trouble and enjoyed our visits to watch Luton at home and used to get extremely excited at around noon awaiting my uncle’s arrival to take me and even have a kick about in the park before the game. Unfortunately, there was an ulterior motive I later found out to this as from the age of around nine we used to go to coaching sessions with a team on our way to football under the guise of they worked for Luton Town and if I did well, I would have a chance to fulfil my dreams.
Just as the season started and the coaching session became more intense, I was told that they could help me fulfil my dreams if I did something for them after the games. At first it was nothing too bad just touching etc of parts of their anatomy, but it slowly became a lot more sinister with more of our team involved in some sadistic and sordid acts including being raped over one hundred times, some even photographed and filmed. When we left the so-called house, we were all given gifts and told that we must never tell anyone that these things had happened.
The older I got the more the acts became more depraved, and the threats became even more dreadful should we go to the police etc or even tell what had happened. I retreated into a shell on my return home and would turn into an insular and exceedingly difficult person. Luckily once I reached the age of twelve my
uncle no longer came to get me and the trips to football stopped as luckily, I found a more local club to allow me to play.
This club was well run and very safe with good coaches and it made me wonder what and why the original team coaches had asked me to do the things they did. I was still fearful of telling my parents so hid the sordid things away for many many years.
About 9 years ago I was summonsed to a meeting at a solicitor’s office in London after my uncle had died and left his will. I was taken to a side room and given a letter from my uncle by the solicitor that he instructed me was going to be read out at the will reading. The letter detailed my uncles and his friends sordid past and was his was of asking the family for forgiveness from his crimes, unfortunately it was to be announced that he had abused a member of the family with his friends in an unbelievably bad way and wanted forgiveness.
The family had no idea but as you can imagine it was exceptionally harrowing for me and my mum and sisters and really was difficult for all to take, unfortunately I was blamed and called a liar by most of his side of the family meaning that I was cast aside as an outcast by that side of the family.
From that moment on I became an exceedingly difficult person to even talk to and took to drinking excessively ended up losing my wife, house, and a lot of family members. I also had to attend two court cases to see some of the dreadful people sentenced which was an exceedingly difficult experience.
As with all people that have suffered any sort of abuse, I tried to take my own life about a year ago but was found and have regular treatment from counsellors and doctors to ensure I can make the best recovery possible from these dreadful nightmares.
I apologise if this is harrowing reading, but it is the only way to get the message across and I will say I have left out the dreadful bits as no one should go through what I and my friends did for over those horrible years meaning most of us lost our childhood and still struggle dreadfully on the difficult days which we all still have.
Alan Arber A Survivor
SPONSORED BY TONY MORLEY & CONNOR ELLIS
MANAGER
BEN COWLING
ASSISTANT MANAGER
ALAN GYTE
COACH
TOM WALKER
SPORTS THERAPIST
LINZI MIRAMS
PLAYERS
CHARLIE BECKWITH
FINLEY LOGAN
SAM PETERS
SAM HAWLEY
DEAN GROGAN
CASEY PHILLIPS
TEDDY WEBBER
ROSS BAILEY
TOM WALTERS
RYAN YALLOP
CRAIG NURSE
SHAUN AVIS
KAINE MANELS
EMMANUEL MACHAYA
THOMAS THULBORN
THOMAS DEBENHAM
The club was established around the 1907–08 season. They played in the Ouse Valley League, before joining the Essex and Suffolk Border League. In 1936–37 the club won the Suffolk Junior Cup, beating Life Brigade 1–0 in a replay. They were Premier Division runners-up in 1947–48 and League Cup finalists in 1957–58.The club subsequently transferred to the Norfolk & Suffolk League.
In 1964 the Norfolk & Suffolk League merged with the East Anglian League to form the Anglian Combination, with Lakenheath placed in Section D of the new league. They were runners-up in Division Three in 1968–69 and finished second in Division Two in 1974–75, a season in which they also won the Suffolk Junior Cup for a second time. In 1981–82 they were runners-up in Division One, earning promotion to the Premier Division. However, the following season saw them finish bottom of the Premier Division, resulting in relegation back to Division One. The club finished bottom of Division One in 1985–86 and were relegated to Division Two.
In the late 1990s Lakenheath transferred to the Cambridgeshire County League. They were champions of Senior Division A in 2007–08, earning promotion to the Premier Division. The following season saw them finish as runners-up in the Premier Division. In 2010–11 the club won the Premier Division title. They were Premier Division runners-up the following season, and again in 2014–15, a season that also saw the club win the Suffolk Senior Cup, beating Ipswich Valley Rangers 7–0 in the final.
Despite finishing only eighth in the Cambridgeshire County League Premier Division in 2017–18, Lakenheath were promoted to Division One North of the Eastern Counties League. In 2019–20 the club were second in the league when it was abandoned in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, in 2021 the club were promoted to the Premier Division based on their results in the abandoned 2019–20 and 2020–21 seasons. They also won the Suffolk Senior Cup for a second time in 2020–21, defeating Bildeston Rangers 2–0 in the final.
SPONSORS
HOME NEIL PRENTICE
AWAY IAN VAN DER REE
SPONSORS
HOME TARTARS ARMY
AWAY CJR SURVEYING LTD
HOME & AWAY SPONSORS
TONY MORLEY & JAMES BAXTER
HOME & AWAY SPONSOR
TONY MORLEY
HOME & AWAY SPONSOR
TONY MORLEY
ED UPSON
SPONSORSHIP RESERVED
HOME & AWAY SPONSORS
PRECON PRODUCTS
SPONSORS
HOME GS SAFETY TRAINING
AWAY TARTERS ARMY
HOME & AWAY SPONSORS
TONY MORLEY & CONNOR ELLIS
HOME & AWAY SPONSOR VANDERS TV
SHAUN
JOSH CURRY
SPONSORED BY THE 2 EDDIES
SPONSORS HOME THE 2 EDDIES AWAY
SPONSORED BY DAVID WALKER
SPONSORS HOME DAVID WALKER
SPONSORS HOME BOYDELL & SONS LTD
AWAY TARTERS ARMY
HARVEY SAYER
SPONSORED BY THE 2 EDDIES SPONSORSHIP AVAILABLE
Sponsor your favourite player and have your company advertised throughout the season across our print and online platforms. Player sponsors will have their company promoted in our matchday programme, on our website, and on our social media channels.
Sponsoring a player is the ideal way to promote your company to our supporters. A player sponsor will have their company advertised in our matchday programme, on our website, and on our social media channels throughout the season.
EMAIL VICKI@STOWMARKETTOWNFC.CO.UK
On Saturday, we played a home game against Wivenhoe Town Reserves, who were a strong team. After our defeat in the cup semi-final last week, we needed to bounce back and play at our best. I was pleased with the team’s response as we dominated the first half and went 1-0 up in the 40th minute thanks to Joel Simmons’ goal. However, Wivenhoe improved in the second half and were eventually awarded a penalty in the 80th minute, which they converted to make it 1-1.
Despite this setback, we had a great chance to win the game with an excellent run from Cam Taylor and a shot from Jack WhartonRichardson, but unfortunately, he missed from close range. Despite this disappointment, the team responded well and gained confidence ahead of our upcoming senior cup last 8 tie against a strong Hadleigh team on Wednesday.
We would appreciate your support if you’re free to come and cheer us on. Up the Stow!
Jimmy up the Stow
CRAIG BROWN SPONSORED GRAHAM BRUNO BROWN
Stowmarket Community Sports & Social Club CIC was formed in 2009 with the aim to create a community club, driven by football, that builds better facilities for the good of Stowmarket.
Our mission statement focuses on five key principles:
• Community
• Equality
• Participants
• Trust and Respect Integrity and Fair Play
The CIC’s aim is to bring the community to Greens Meadow. To achieve this, our three main objectives are to:
• Improve the clubhouse facilities
• Improve the performances on the pitch
• Change the age demographic of the club to rejuvenate local interest
MONDAY CLOSED
TUESDAY - THURSDAY
7:00PM - 11:00PM
FRIDAY 5:00PM - 11:00PM
SATURDAY & SUNDAY
12:00PM - 11:00PM
THE FOLLOWING AREAS OF THE COMMUNITY FACILITY ARE AVAILABLE FOR HIRE STARTING
SCAN QR CODE TO BOOK
STOWMARKET TOWN
(GK) JAMES BRADBROOK O
(C) TOM BULLARD O
JOE JEFFORD O
JACK AINSLEY O
CHRIS CASEMENT O
KANE MUNDAY O
TOMMY SMITH O
LUKE HIPKIN O
JACK WILKINSON O
JOSH CURRY O
SHAUN BAMMANT O
KIERAN MORLEY O
ZACH GAYFER O
ELLIS GIRLING O
ED UPSON O
HARVEY SAYER O
LAKENHEATH
O CHARLIE BECKWITH (GK)
O FINLEY LOGAN
O SAM PETERS
O SAM HAWLEY
O DEAN GROGAN
O CASEY PHILLIPS
O TEDDY WEBBER
O ROSS BAILEY
O TOM WALTERS
O RYAN YALLOP
O CRAIG NURSE
O SHAUN AVIS
O KAINE MANELS
O EMMANUEL MACHAYA
O THOMAS THULBORN
O THOMAS DEBENHAM
MANAGER CHRIS CASEMENT
ASST MANAGER RICHARD WILKINS
MANAGER BEN COWLING
ASST MANAGER ALAN GYTE
MATCH OFFICALS
REFEREE ALEX SHIPP ASSISTANT REFEREES ANDREW GRAY & LUKE HAMMOND
“The Isthmian Football League strongly supports the FA statement that there should be a zero-tolerance approach against racism and all forms of discrimination. Accordingly, any form of discriminatory abuse whether it by reason of age, disability, gender reassignment, race, religion and belief, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, sex and sexual orientation or any other form of abuse will be reported to The Football Association for action by that Association.” (The FA 0800 085 0508 / Kick it Out 020 7253 0162).The Isthmian League and all Member Clubs in the League are committed to promoting equality by treating people fairly and with respect, by recognising that inequalities may exist, by taking steps to address them and providing access and opportunities for all members of the community.”
