Film & Media opportunity via Merthyr Town FC

Merthyr Town FC is looking for young people who are interested in a possible career in the media or film.

Aged between 14-25? If so? We need your help!


As some of you may be aware, we have been in the process of applying for a "Heritage and Young Roots" fund. If we are successful this will;



* Give all participants a fully recognized media qualification (Via Merthyr Tydfil College)

* Gain invaluable work experience for a CV

* Fund brand new and up to date equipment

* Attend networking events with other media departments and Universities

* Produce a Sporting Heritage documentary on Merthyr Town FC and the surrounding areas

* Add another branch to reach out towards the community



This is a very unique and exciting project for any young person wishing to get into the media, one that wasn't around when we were teenagers.



Now we need to get some names on our list so please, SPREAD THE WORD!



If anyone is interested in the course or being a part of Martyrs TV, please e-mail me Matthew Davies at m_davies1987@hotmail.co.uk





.

Merthyr Town confirm 3g pitch investment

MTFC are very happy to issue the following press release regarding our bid for a grant and 3G artificial pitch

Ambitious Merthyr Town Football Club have netted a £500,000 award to install a 3rd generation synthetic pitch at Penydarren Park.

It is part of their exciting plans to secure the future of the club and hit the target of increasing their role as a community organisation.

A new 25-year lease for the Park is being negotiated with Merthyr Tydfil Borough Council. On completion, work on the pitch will get under way by the Bristol contractors Verde Recreo.

The firm have more than 18 years experience in the industry and their first major task in South Wales was to refurbish the astroturf at Abertillery Leisure Centre.

The huge cash boost was confirmed at a meeting of the Borough Council. The money will come from the Ffos y Fran Community Fund, which is financed by royalty payments received by the council from Miller Argent Limited based on tonnage of coal extracted from the Ffos y Fran land reclamation scheme.

Merthyr Town sprang up to preserve football in the area after the former Merthyr Tydfil club which was liquidated three years ago.

Southern League status was lost but the re-formed club, Merthyr Town, was welcomed into The Toolstation Western League and after two successive promotions, a place was regained last season in the Evo-Stik Southern League (Div 1 South and West). The club's first season saw them having to play at Taff's Well because the Administrator waited to see if there were any offers to buy the ground. They were able to return to the Park two seasons ago. And the club, under co-managers Garry Shephard and Danny Carter just missed out on a speedy return to the Premier Division of the league, losing in the Play-Offs final, after extra time, in Hungerford earlier this month.

The planned developments at the Park include new floodlights, developing the entrance to the ground, demolishing the derelict Strikers social club, providing more car-parking space, and extending social and community facilities.

Merthyr Town FC are now owned by the fans and for the fans with the remit to be very much a community club.
Company secretary John Strand said: "The club sees this development as a springboard for the club to become a hub for football development in Merthyr Tydfil and the surrounding areas."
He added: "The club wish to thank the leader of the council Coun Brendan Toomey and the chief executive Mr Gareth Chapman for their invaluable support."

The club has also obtained funding from The FA Football Foundation and the European Regional Development Fund towards the cost of the project.

Merthyr Town chairman Meurig Price commented: "We feel that the new 3G pitch is definitely the way forward to ensure stability of the club. It will improve the quality of the football and we won't have matches postponed in the wet weather.
"We will be able to use it much more than a grass pitch. This season we had 62 games on the ground and the pitch suffered because we didn't have the money or the equipment to improve the pitch."

They expect a big demand from local sporting clubs to hire the new pitch. "Extra income is the way forward for the club and we will achieve this through hiring out the pitch. And we want to extend the club to be a part of the whole community of Merthyr Tydfil. The new pitch will also help us to make further progress as a club," Mr Price added.

The chairman said the pitch installation was expected to take 12 weeks. "This may mean that we will have to play a couple of games early next season on another ground."

Mr Strand explained:" This facility will enable the pitch to be used far more extensively than it is at the moment and will be available for use in wet weather conditions which make the current pitch often unplayable."

Despite the work of the groundsman, the pitch was often bumpy in the season just ended. And Mr Price said: "A 3G pitch will enable the team to play in the style which best suits them."

Mr Strand explained that the pitch would also be available to a far wider variety of users than at present.
This will include footballers from the club's associated team for disabled footballers, the Town's Football Academy, college teams, veterans' teams and ladies football.The pitch will also be available for private hire.
To deal with the increased usage, a stadium manager will be eventually employed.

The artificial pitch has a life of about 10 years for the surface and about 20 years for underneath.

Disabled footballers were at Penydarren Park on Sunday and they are likely to be the last to use the ground before the new development kicks off to mark a new era for football in the town.

End of a busy season

Merthyr Town FC was represented at a recent South West region meeting of Supporters Direct. The meeting was held at Rodney Parade. As part of the meeting we were asked as to our acheivements this season away from the field of play; the first reaction was that it may have been a quiet campaign but pretty soon we were reeling off numerous events and projects that have helped to cement our place at the heart of the South Wales Valleys communities;

Merthyr in pink shirts to raise over £1,000 for our nominated charity of Cancer Aid
Our mobile museum exhibition on display at the Cyfarthfa Castle Museum
John Hartson evening to raise funds and awareness for cancer issues, once again in partnership with the Mayor's charity Cancer Aid
Sponsored walk over the Brecon Beacons from Brecon town to Penydarren Park to raise funds for the Merthyr Town FC Academy programme
Junior Martyrs trip to the Panto at the new Theatr Soar complex in Merthyr Tydfil town centre, over 50 children & parents enjoyed Owen Money in Robin Hood
Candac Suite hosting the inaugural Merthyr Town FC Hall of Fame evening which celebrated players spanning 90 years of football at Penydarren Park
The forthcoming 2nd annual Merthyr Town FC Mini-Football Festival involving over 700 children
Collection of easter eggs for local charity Llamau
Let's Kick Racism Out of Football Event v Abingdon United
Visit by Merthyr Town players to the children's ward at Prince Charles Hospital and donation of gifts to the children and ward
Partnership with Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council to host a Foster Parents appeal day at Penydarren Park
A packed Candac Suite hosting the Junior Martyrs Christmas Party which over 100 children receiving a small gift from Santa Claus
Successful hosting of the Ex-players day at the ground, over 40 former players & managers in attendance
Sponsored ball dribble by the Junior Martyrs around the Penydarren Park pitch at half-time of the Wimborne Town match, each of the 20 children involved received a free football from the team sponsors Uhlsport. The event raised almost £600.00 for the club's funds.

It's been a great season at Penydarren Park with our supporters once again showing that the future of our club is bright with us as it's owners.

Look out for the Junior Martyrs summer trip to the seaside in June/July too.

We look forward to seeing everyone back at Penydarren Park ready for the next campaign. Don't forget that every supporter can make a difference to Merthyr Town FC.

Merthyr Town youth players wins Wales cap

Wales beat the Republic of Ireland in an Under-18 Semi Professional international match on Tuesday evening at the new Nantporth Stadium in Bangor. The match ending in a 2-0 victory for the Red Dragons.

Ashley Hollingshead of Merthyr Town was included in the squad and came off the bench in the 49th minute to represent his country.

Ashley is pictured above receiving his honours cap from Trefor Lloyd Hughes (FAW President) and Chris Whitley (FAW International Committee Chair) after the match in the Farrar Suite at the stadium.

It is another proud moment for the Supporters Trust as it was their decision nearly 9 years ago to resurrect the Youth Team at Penydarren Park and to fund it directly to provide an opportunity for young players in the South Wales Valleys to further their development in the game.

The youth team is now a fundamental part of the community club's academy structure and Ashley is continuing his career under the watchful eye of Academy Director Ceri Bowley.

Congratulations to Ashley for representing both his club and country so proudly.

Football Exhibition opens in Merthyr Tydfil

The Soccer Dragons Football Exhibition has opened at the Cyfarthfa Castle Museum in Merthyr Tydfil.

The exhibition has been compiled by both Ceri Stennett, FAW Historian, and Mark Evans, supporter of Merthyr Town FC to display the history of Welsh football and the role of Merthyr Tydfil in that story.

There are varied items on display from the very old; a 1913 Merthyr Town v Plymouth Argyle match programme, to the very new; a signed Gareth Bale Wales shirt.

The staff at the Cyfarthfa Castle Museum have been excellent in their promotion of Merthyr Tydfil's strong football tradition and the display although small is packed with information.

The mobile football museum project of Merthyr Town FC provides the backdrop to the memorabilia on display on boards or behind glass.

Merthyr Town FC is run by democratically by its supporters and this event forms part of their community strategy of education via the sport of football.

Chris Coleman, the National Team Manager of Wales, will be at the Museum at 6pm on Thursday 14th March for a Q&A session with the public. If you wish to attend please contact Mark Evans via wolvesy@yahoo.co.uk

The exhibition is open until 28th March 2013.

A video of the exhibition is available via the following link;

http://mtfcforum.team-talk.net/t1403-a-short-video-of-the-soccer-dragons-exhibition