from the chair
This week I thought I’d share a bit of an insight into our U18s team who play in the KentYouthLeagueonSundaymornings.TheyaremanagedbyRussellWilsonwhois wellknownintheareaforhissuccesswithThanetteams–includingRamsgateFCin his younger years. He has Andrew Weatherley as an assistant – another recognisablenameforhistimeatMargateFCandperhapsalsothesurnameringsa bell for a few as he is the son of local legend Mark Weatherley. To finish off the managementteamthereisAndyWalkerwhoisour“Northerninfluence”hailingfrom Manchesterwhereheenjoyedplayingandcoachingbeforeheadingtothe sunnyclimateofThanet!ItisthereforenosurprisethattheU18shave becometheplayersandtheteamthattheyarewiththispedigreeof leadership–withafewoftheyoungstersstartingtocontributetoour adults’teamsalready.Astrongfocusongoodattitudeanddiscipline alongsideourpriorityofensuringtheladsenjoythemselves(andthe parents!) NextyearwillbetheirfinalyearofU18sfootballandwhilstI amsureafewwilldisappearintoUniversitylifeawayfromthearea, therewillbeplentywhowillhopefullyenjoythenextphaseoftheir Minsterjourney(orhigherupperhaps…wewillofcourse welcomethis)
from the boss
GoodafternoonandwelcometoHartsdownPark,wereturntodayafteraweek'srest tofaceFleetdownUnitedforthethirdtimethisseasonandthisisthesecondgame athome.WeplayedFleetdowninSeptemberandOctober,winningtheawayleague game6-0andthehomecuptie8-0.Wewouldbedelightedwithsimilarscorelines todaybutareundernoillusionsthatwewillneedtoperformtoourrecenthighlevels in order to ensure the victory It is surprising to see Fleetdown, a team long established in the KCFL Premier Division at the foot of the table with 2 wins, 2 draws and 19 losses from their 23 league games. Fleetdown have historically been a force in the league and a well run club, I am sure that given time and patience their fortunes will turn once again. A win today for us would see us retain the top spot in theleaguebutthetopofthetableisverytightwithanumberofteamsvyingforfirst placeasweheadintothefinalthirdoftheseason.
Our game last week against Kent United was postponed due to players from both sides being involved in the County Rep game as players from the KCFL competed against a team made up from the equivalent Herts league. Charlie Sharp represented Minster and he did so superbly, scoring the teams only goal of the game from distance, a 3-1 means that it was a short-lived adventure for the team but an enjoyable one nonetheless The players now all return to the teams with many of them being in contention at the top of the division It was great to have a representativefromMinsterandwecongratulateCharlieonhisselection.
Our last home game against Guru Nanak saw us avenge our early season defeat with a 3-2 victory. A superb first half performance saw us take a 2-0 lead into the interval. Ollie Harris opened the scoring midway through the half, Jake Munday winning the ball back and feeding the ball into Ollie’s run, an excellent finish across the face of the goal was more than just reward for an excellent start. Minutes later Matt Weatherley glanced home a superb header from a whipped Todd Jordan delivery and we justifiably led my two goals. The second half saw Guru perform far better and force us into a more defensive pattern, despite this Guru created few chances,buttheydidconverttwoofthem.Thefirstmadeit2-1,ourreplytothiswas strong and Jake Munday tucked away a Josh Neaves cross to restore the two goal cushion Alategoalconcededfromasetpiecemadeforatensefinishbutwewould en
Thisseventhwininarowwouldprovetobeonethattookustothetopofthetable for the first time this season following results in other games. Whilst this is nothing morethanasymbolofourpositiveperformancesinrecentmonthsatthisstage,itis a pleasing one nonetheless. We are in a good moment as a group with performances levels being maintained and a squad that is pushing each other to ensurethatwehavequalitytoimpactgamesbothoffensivelyanddefensivelywhen required It will be important to try to maintain this momentum as we move in February, it is essential that the group remains humble and hardworking, whilst playing with the confidence and enjoyment that a winning habit should breed. February sees us take on Tenterden, Hawkinge, Long Lane and Metrogas, a set of fixtures that we know will bring a lot of challenges as we seek to build on what we haveachievedsofarthisseason.
One final note this week is to mention Ryan Roberts. Ryan is likely to play his last game for us this weekend as he moves away from the area. Ryan has been a vital partoftheclubinrecentyears,initiallyaplayerinthereservesset,wealwaysknew hehadthequalitytobeafirstteamregularandsoitproved.Inthe24/25seasonhe wasaneverpresentandakeyplayerintheclubachievingitshighesteveraccolade intheformoftheKentIntermediateChallengeShield.Hispace,quality,commitment and intelligence at full back were a key feature of his performance for the club. Ryan’sgenuine,humbleandlikeablecharacterepitomisesaMinsterplayerinmany waysandhewillalwaysbewelcomeattheclub.Wewishhimthevery bestinhisrelocationandhopetoseehimagainwhenhecomesback tovisitfamilyinthearea.OnceapartoftheMinsterfamily,alwaysa partoftheMinsterfamily!GoodluckRyanandthankyouforyour contributionstotheclub!
Thankyouaseverforyoursupportandwehopetobringyou anothergameofgoals,qualityandcharactertoday!
our main sponsors
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Elliot is no stranger to the football club having played for them as part of his introduction into adult football. He would go onto play in the KCFL for East Kent College Bears under our 1 Team assistant manager, Liam Morris. Elliot is also a registeredplayerfortheMinsterOldBoys(Vets)side. st
Tradefit4U are a family run company with a name synonymous with local football. FatherandsonduoTonyandJaymeWisker
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1911 team
welcome to minster fc
Youwillhaveseenfromtheclubcrestthatweareover100yearsoldwithonlyWorld Wars getting in the way of continued existence – a matter not taken lightly as club players and staff fought for their country during these difficult times. If you get a chance take a look at the club photos at our pavilion main hall that reminds us of ourhistoryandthegenerationsofplayersthathaverepresentedourclub
Throughouttheseyearstherehavebeensuccessful teams – most notably in the 1960s – that have playedthegameintherightspiritandhavesetthe foundations for future generations to continue A difficult time in the early 1980s saw the club – with onlyasingleteamatthetime-almostfailtofinish a season in the Thanet League due to lack of playersandsupport.
My father Ralph (also known locally as Colin) stepped in to gather as many eligible youngsters–includingmyself–toregisterand playthosefinalmatchestokeeptheclubalive.
The results didn’t matter – there was a much largermotivetokeepthecontinuityoftheclub.
For us 16/17 year old lads at the time we were finally playing for Minster – a team we had watchedfromthesidelinesformanyyears The following seasons saw the club continue to buildfromtheverybottomupwards.
Ourclubhasnowgrownveryquicklyintheselast11-12yearsaswehavebuiltonthe success of a very young team – managed by Ian Wallace - that have progressed through the Canterbury & District League and further into the Kent County Football League to the Premier Division where we have consolidated our standing in this division. Two further adult teams were added in 2019/2020 and during these last 5 yearswehaveseenourclubdevelopapathwayforyoungplayerswithintheareato progresswiththeirfootball.Ourveteransteamcontinuetoenjoytheirfootballinthe locallenMartinThanet&DistrictLeague.Wearealsoreallyhappytonowhavefour youth teams represent Minster from U15 to U18 age groups and our previous youth teamshaveprovidedplayersintoouradultssquads.Thisseasonalsosees theclubdevelopawomen'sfootballteamforthefirsttimesincethe1960s whenMinsterwereoneoftheoriginalfemaleteamsinthearea.
Whilstwehavehadgoodfortuneonthepitchtheselastfewyearsbacked byahugeamountofeffortawayfrommatchdays,wecontinuetobea clubthatseelongtermfriendshipsandasenseofcommunityspiritas beingthereal“winning.”
Avillageteamthatwillcontinuetousefootballtobuild competitivespiritalongsidefriendships thatwilllastalifetime.
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