ARCHIVED NEWS ARTICLES

AGM and Managers' Meeting - Monday 3rd July 2023 

Our AGM and Managers' Meeting will be held on Monday 3rd July 2023 at Sindlesham Court, Mole Road, Sindlesham, RG41 5EA.  Arrival from 7.30pm for a prompt start at 8.00pm. 

So that we can have the best possible season for the girls, we would strongly recommend all team managers attend this meeting.  During the season the majority of queries and issues we have from and with our managers will be from those who don't attend our meetings, who conseqently have not met with their fellow age group managers, and who are not therefore on the same page (or pitch?) as their peers.  Many of you, especially those new to the league, will have similar questions, so please come along to the meeitng and enable us to answer the questions once, rather than the same questions multiple times throughout the season! 

We will presenting our fair play awards at this meeting to the winners from the 2022/23 season.  This is a chance to recognise and acknowldge the standards in behaviour set by your fellow managers.  Respect and fair play are fundamental to how our league operates: playing the game for the love of the game in the right spirit, for the enjoyment and development for the girls particpating.

Restart of the BCGFL - 10th April 2021

The key priority for the League is to get the girls and their teams playing again, and therefore we intend to provide organised football for teams starting on the 10th April 2021. To enable us to do this we will be providing a competitive mini league format for teams in all age groups. We did look at finding a way to complete the existing league divisions, and where there were some divisions and some teams that would have been able to complete the season, but this was not the case for all teams across all age groups. We commenced the season with the smaller divisions, thinking there would be a maximum of two months disruption, but now with over four months of disruption it will be impossible to ensure any degree of fairness in completing all leagues. This will be disappointing to many given the efforts many teams went to to play their fixtures up to December, but our priority now is to get the girls playing fixtures in the weeks to the end of May. Regardless of the FA extension into June, we are aware that councils will still be taking down their pitches at the end of May, so envisage facility issues for those that use local authority pitches, and those that share with cricket, beyond this point. Club secretaries have been asked about their own facilities with regards playing to end of May and we will look to assist those clubs that are without facilities from restart.   

For age groups from U9 to U16 the mini leagues will consist of 4 to 6 teams.  Where there are 4 teams it will be home and away, where there are 5 or 6 teams they will play each other once with a friendly filling any gaps. All of this will be subject to the continued relaxing of Covid restrictions which, as we have already seen this season, is unfortunately not guaranteed.  

Should there be any team that does not want to participate in any restart organised by the league please inform your age group manager asap. 

Unfortunately we are unable to restart our central venue activities, including the festivals for U7 and U8's.

It will be just fantastic to get everyone playing again!

Next Managers' Meeting: Tuesday 15th September 2020

Our next Managers' Meeting is on Tuesday 15th September 2020 at  8.00pm via Zoom.  Details of this meeting, including the Zoom link, will be circulated to all managers nearer this date.

Referee of the Season

We are looking for nominations for our Referee and Young Referee of the Season Awards.  Details of the award and how to nominate can be found here.

Closure of the 2019/20 Season

The BCGFL committee met virtually on 3rd April to decide how best to close the 2019/20 season after the FA had made the decision to put an end to grassroots football for this year. After attending a meeting with Berks & Bucks County FA earlier in that week, the leagues were presented with two options to end their seasons: either declare the season null and void, or determine divisional winners by an average points per game system.  The committee decided that, due to the variations in factors such as numbers of games left, number of games different teams had played, and the number of teams that in a normal season would still be in with a chance of winning their divisions, that the second option would create too many contentious decisions.

The League decided that the most sensible option, agreed by a majority vote, was that the season of 2019/20 be declared null and void (with the exception of the completed Autumn Cup competitions).  It is with great sadness and regret that we had to make this decision and understand there will have been a lot of disappointment, which many members of the committee deeply felt for their own teams, but with the bigger picture of the world we are currently living in, and the situation we faced, the committee accepted that this was the only sensible way of ending the season.

The League wishes all those involved in its teams well, from club official and coaches to the players and their parents, and hopes that everyone remains healthy through the coming months. We very much hope that football will return to normal in September but will take the guidance of when the season will start from the FA and Government. 

Next Managers' Meeting Wednesday 11th March 2020

Our next Managers' Meeting is on Wednesday 2020 at 7.30pm at the Earley Home Guard Social Club, Pitts Lane, Earley, RG6 1BT.   Details of this meeting will be circulated to clubs nearer the date.

Please note that any annual trophies not returned must be returned at this meeting.   

BBFA U8 & U10 Girls Festivals in Slough

Berks & Bucks FA will again be organisign monthly introductory festivals in Sough for new U8 and U10 Girls teams. Dates are 19th October 2019, 23rd November 2019, 29th February 2020, 28th March 2020 and 25th April 2020.

Dates and information on the festivals can be found via the documents below.  To register for the Slough Festivals complete the registration form & send to Ellen Hopkins via email to Development@Berks-BucksFA.com.

Details of the U7 and U8 Festivals organised by the BCGFL can be found here.

U12 to U16 BCGFL Girls' Goalkeeping - Friday 17th April 2020 at Ascot United FC

The BCGFL will be holding our next Girls' Goalkeeping Day on Friday 17th April 2020. This event is restricted to girls currently playing 9v9 or 11v11 (U12-U16) to ensure the content is relevant to all participants.  There will initially be a limit of one per team to ensure as many regular goalkeepers as possible have a chance to participate, therefore I would ask team managers to initially contact Brian Strange at treasurer@bcgfl.org.uk should their goalkeeper wish to attend and I will forward a booking form and further details.  Places on these courses fill up fast so please respond asap. 

Venue: Ascot United FC, Ascot Racecourse, Car Park 7&8, off A330 Winkfield Road, Ascot SL5 7LJ

Time: 9.30pm - 3:30pm
Age Groups: U12 to U16 

Cost: £15 per player

FA Coach Mentoring Prgramme

Please find below the information provided by Jonathan Simmons that was presented at last week's Managers'  Meeting. Should your club be interested please feel free to contact Jonathan at jonathan.simmons@thefa.com .

BCGFL Girls' Goalkeeping - Friday 1st November 2019 - SORRY FULLY BOOKED

The BCGFL will be holding our next Girls' Goalkeeping Day on Friday 1st November 2019. This event is restricted to girls currently playing mini-soccer (U9-U11) to ensure the content is relevant to all participants.  Places are filling fast, so please book early to avoid disappointment. Note that as places are limited there will be a maximum of 4 players per club.

Venue: Wokingham & Emmbrook FC, Lowther Road, Wokingham, Berkshire, RG41 1JB

Time: 9.30pm - 3:30pm
Age Groups: U9, U10 and U11 (school years 4, 5 and 6)

Cost: £10 per

BCGFL CPD Event - Wednesday 25th September 2019

 The leagues first CPD event will take place on the Wednesday 25th September. Each coach will get 2 hours CPD for attending the entire workshop, if they sign in and leave their FAN number.

Venue: Piggott School, Twyford Road, Wargrave, Berkshire. RG10 8DS.

Time: 6:30pm - 8:30pm
Session: For new (& existing) managers and coaches - practical introduction and tips on training & matches.

Please contact Andy Caldwell at coach@bcgfl.org.uk to confirm your attendance.

2019 Tournaments!

Details of girls only and mixed tournaments with girls sections can be found at our Female Tournaments 2019 page.

Players Wanted? Looking for a team?

Please find details of clubs who are currently actively looking for new players in our Players Wanted section!!  Note that the majority of clubs in our league are always keen for new players to join.  Find your nearest BCGFL club on our interactive map in the Our Clubs Section

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