The Great Escape
St Albans City Football Club
2015/16
A Lost Cause?
On February 12th 2016, St Albans
City Football Club were at the
bottom of their league. They
announced that a new manager
would be taking over.
Ian Allinson, a former Arsenal
player, took up the post of manager
for St Albans City.
His first match ended in a 2-2 draw
at home to Concord Rangers. His
second match ended in a 1-0 defeat
away to the league leaders,
Ebbsfleet. In his third match the
team lost 1-0 away to Bath City.
Nobody gave St Albans City a hope
of staying up!
Ian Allinson
Manager of St Albans City F.C.
Never Give Up
Resilience is an important quality in
sport. It is also an important part of
your education, and of growing up!
We can’t always win! Things don’t
always turn out right. Some of the
most powerful learning occurs
when we make mistakes or get
things wrong.
However, our effort and attitude
can make a massive difference. In
sport, team spirit is vital.
Everybody at St Albans City was
united. They trained hard and
worked together as a team. If they
were going to be relegated, they
would at least give it their best shot
and go down in style!
Believe in Yourself!
Although St Albans had not won any of their first three matches under their new
manager, they had been playing well and there was a real sense of determination
and effort throughout the team.
Suddenly things started to change. St Albans City beat Whitehawk by six goals to nil.
Whitehawk actually finished the league season in a play-off position and enjoyed an
excellent run in the F.A. Cup. This shows what a great achievement this victory was.
The Saints then defeated their local rivals Hemel Hempstead. At last, the supporters
had something to cheer about!
A change of Fortunes
After losing that match against Bath
City, St Albans City went on an
amazing run. They won another
match by six goals to nil and, in their
remaining 13 league matches they
won the vast majority of their games
and only lost twice.
(These two defeats were against the
two teams who were to eventually be
promoted to a higher league.)
St Albans City had succeeded against
all odds. They now knew that if they
won their final match of the season
they would avoid relegation...
Time to Celebrate!
The final match of the season was
against Dartford, who still had a slim
chance of promotion.
St Albans City played superbly. They
won by four goals to nil! Their final
goal of the season was scored by
James Kaloczi, a former pupil at
Oakwood School.
The end of the season had been an
incredible adventure...
An now St Albans City Football Club
are offering all primary school
children in St Albans the opportunity
to join them on next season’s
adventure!
Saints in the Community
St Albans City Football Club have
worked closely with primary schools
in St Albans in recent years.
The club have hosted an annual
penalty prize competition, enabled
our schools to play their cup finals at
Clarence Park, and provided vouchers
for school children when their school
are taking part in the penalty prize.
A number of schools have enjoyed
assemblies, sometimes led by players
or club officials, and sometimes
having the opportunity to meet the
club mascot, Sammy the Saint.
But next season there will be our
most exciting initiative to date...
The Young Saints Supporters Club
SIX MATCHES FREE OF CHARGE!
For any primary aged child who becomes a member of the Young Saints
Supporters Club, you will receive a Membership Card that entitles you to
attend any SIX league matches free of charge, with an accompanying adult
being admitted at half price (£7.50)
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You will also receive:
A fixture card
A team photograph
The opportunity to become ‘mascot’ for a home match
The opportunity to win a signed football or a signed shirt
10% discount on any merchandise from the club shop
How do I become a Member?
You will also receive posters for home matches, regular updates from the players,
and the chance to enter competitions (such as football quizzes) over the course
of the season.
To sign up, simply collect a Young Saints Supporters Club Application Form
from your school office. Complete the form and return it with a cheque for
£5.00 (the membership fee) made payable to ‘St Albans City Football Club.’
You will then be given a Membership Card. This card can be used to attend SIX
LEAGUE GAMES OF YOUR CHOICE over the course of next season.
You will then be sent a Young Saints Supporters Pack (including fixture list and
team photo) at the start of next season. These will be sent directly to your
primary schools. If you are currently in Year 6 then you must put your secondary
school on the form and the packs will be sent directly to your new secondary
schools.
Working with our Community
St Albans City are YOUR local football team. The club want to work closely
with the primary schools because we are proud of our local community. Lots
of you may already play football for club teams such as St Albans City Youth,
Harvesters, St Albans Wanderers or London Colney. Others may simply enjoy
watching matches. A number of the current St Albans team attended
schools in the area. Ben Herd attended Killigrew, James Kaloczi attended
Oakwood, and Ben Martin went to school in Harpenden.
Ben Herd
Bem Martin
An Exciting Season Ahead...
Ben Herd is one of many exciting new signings for next season. Another
local player, Sam Merson, also went to school in the area. His father, Paul
Merson played for many seasons at Arsenal and was also capped for
England!
So...
Why not join the Young Saints Supporters Club.
Join us on next season’s
adventure!