One of England’s oldest consecutively run amateur football clubs Willaston White Star is to stage a celebration to mark its 130th birthday.
And the milestone will also be marked by the launch of the “Willaston Cup” which will become a new annual event.
The cup will be staged for the club’s current teams, including the men’s team as well as U12s and U14s.
It will be staged on Sunday July 27 and also include a family fun day with stalls and refreshments.
Welfare officer Michelle Brassington said: “We wanted to be a part of the local community and share our love for the beautiful game and make football accessible to all.
“So what better way to welcome Willaston and the surrounding areas to club than combining the cup day with an event for all the family to enjoy!
“After engaging with the parish council we found out that the Willaston garden party unfortunately isn’t in the calendar for this year so we have chosen to provide a similar event.
“We have stalls, inflatables, food and a bar at the Willaston Cup. This will be a family fun day and hopefully one for everyone’s calendar.
“We have decided we wanted to give back to those around us and have decided to make the event free entry.”
The day will kick off with the first games from 9am, with matches held until late afternoon.
The idea for the new Willaston Cup was inspired by the Commander Bayley Cup which the club competed for as long ago as 1930.
Michelle added: “Between 1930 and 2000, we ran the Commander Bayley Cup, which involved teams made up of five league players and six non players.
“The trophy is an actual copy of the FA Cup which was originally given to each of the players and manager of West Bromwich Albion when they won cup in 1928 or thereabouts.
“Bob and Norman went to FA headquarters in London to receive the 100 years plaque in 1995, which is on show in the clubhouse.
“They were told then we were are the oldest consecutively-run amateur football club, although there is some debate about a team in Sheffield but they did not remain amateurs.”
In the past, White Star struggled to continue in the Cheshire Saturday league so joined the Sunday league in about 1967.
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