MARK Senior is delighted to be involved with Thackley again and glad he is in a position to help.

Senior returned in a director of football role earlier this season and is working with all the age groups to help develop players and improve the skills of the coaches. He is the driving force behind the fund-raising game the club is staging on November 2.

He said: “I moved back into Idle and I asked if I could help the club in any way. They came up with the fancy title that means nothing really.

“I just get involved wherever I can and I’m here for anyone who wants a bit of advice or a sounding board for new ideas. I have always liked this club and it’s good to be back.”

Being a local, Senior knows how much tradition the club has and just how much of an asset to the community it is.

He said: “Thackley football club needs to be here because it offers something to so many people. The junior section is doing really well and Thackley has links with the local schools.

“We have reinstated the under-19s and got them back in the Alliance League. They played last season but didn’t start this one. I think that was because of finances but we held a trials night and we had about 30 lads there.

“We formed a squad from them and four have already gone on to play for the reserve team. I try to strengthen the links between all sections of the club because I remember it as being a vibrant club that brought players through right from the an early age to play for the first team and some who have gone on to bigger clubs.

“Thackley has had a great record of producing good quality players right back to when Graham Clifford was here. Finance is an issue though, cost of floodlights, paying referees and officials and travel costs. It all adds up.”

The fund-raising day will feature a game between past and present Thackley players as its main event. Former boss John Boyle has come out of retirement for the day to manage the past players.

The response to Senior’s brainchild has been so staggering that he has had to organise three 40-minute thirds of one game to accommodate everyone who wants to play. Towngate Fisheries of High Street, Idle, have come forward to sponsor the match.