Harvesters Football Club have been chosen to be a partner club of sportswear giant Nike.
The club, based in Oaklands Lane, Smallford, will hold the title throughout the 2016/17 season.
The award is part of Nike’s commitment to grass-roots football and will help support the club through coaching bursaries and equipment, as well as raising their profile.
The club were selected for the diversity of their 43 teams across boys and girls, which sees approximately 500 children playing football for the club every weekend, including the coaching of under 5’s.
Nike was also impressed by Harvesters’ commitment to a high standard of coaching, and their desire to further improve the playing facilities.
The partnership will also support the club’s drive to attract a main sponsor for the new season, as part of the launch of a new Nike kit that is being selected by all the club’s members.
Reece Jones, Nike team football director for southern England, said: “We are delighted to welcome Harvesters to the Nike Partner Club family, enabling us to play a part in the club’s further development, including its plans to attract a high profile sponsor for the new season.
“We have been impressed by their role in the local community and commitment to the highest standards of football development in the St Albans area.”
Dean Austin, Harvesters head of football development alongside his day-job as assistant coach at Watford, said: “We are really proud to have been selected by Nike to join the scheme and look forward to benefitting from the support they can give the club as we further develop our coaching standards and facilities in order to provide a great environment for children to enjoy playing football.
“We’re also excited about the improved profile this will give us as we look to secure a club sponsor across all of our 43 teams.”
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