The following is a personal report by Ronan Warde.
The Football In The Community (FITC) scheme has long been an opportunity for football clubs to play a role in their community, promoting both the football club, and providing an outlet for youngsters to learn football skills, take part in physical exercise etc.
Both communities and the football authorities lauded the FITC scheme run by Wimbledon FC. The impact of Wimbledon FC relocating to Milton Keynes resulted in the closure of many of the FITC programmes in South West London, with the Merton programme being the solitary scheme left running. In the meantime, Wimbledon FC quickly expanded their scheme in Milton Keynes, reaching many thousands of children.
Now that Wimbledon FC are in administration, it’s interesting to compare the involvement of the two councils, to see exactly how there are helping their respective schemes.
In Milton Keynes, the council have taken over the FITC scheme run by Wimbledon FC. Under administration, Wimbledon FC are no longer able to operate the programme, so Milton Keynes Council have stepped in, taken the scheme over (under contract), employed the relevant staff, and are proceeding with running the FITC scheme themselves whilst the Wimbledon FC administrators struggle to keep the club alive.
In Merton, the council are currently involved in discussions with a number of clubs to identify who will take over the running of the FITC scheme. The council have long claimed they back the return of Wimbledon to Merton, but their commitment has been questioned on a number of occasions, by supporters, football authorities and even Wimbledon FC. In fact, the recent debacle regarding the Sir Joseph Hood playing fields which AFC Wimbledon hoped to use for the Junior Academy has again made supporters of Wimbledon really wonder how much Merton Council want the return of football to the Borough.
A telephone call to Fulham FC confirmed that Fulham are considering taking over the Merton FITC scheme “…but I didn’t tell you that….”.
Fulham. The club who many predict will be the next ‘Wimbledon’, and currently groundshare with QPR in Shepherds Bush.
Why Merton Council would even consider such a move is beyond me. AFC Wimbledon have proved their ability to run the Junior Academy, where many of the individuals involved in the Wimbledon FC academy now play a pivotal role. Why Merton Council would consider a club outside the Borough, when AFC Wimbledon are the natural inheritors of such a scheme, is beyond me. Why Merton Council would consider choosing another club in place of the club who have fought tooth and nail to represent Merton, and based their campaign on the concept of ‘It’s a Community Thing’, is beyond me.
Now is the time for Merton Council to show their true colours and back AFC Wimbledon in their bid to run the FITC scheme. AFC Wimbledon are a football club committed to the Merton Community, with fully qualified experienced coaches, a vast wealth of experience and backing from thousands of volunteer fans, and a media machine can that only bring praise to the Borough of Merton.
The individuals responsible for the FITC scheme in Merton Council are currently unavailable for comment due to illness. However, I understand the FITC discussions are proceeding at a fast pace, with rumours of a final decision being made Wednesday 2nd July. I am unsure if Merton Council are taking submissions from Merton Residents on the decision, but you can always ask them. (020) 8545 3652
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