Emley AFC’s partnership scheme continues to flourish as ambitious football club Wooldale Wanderers AFC become the ninth club to forge a link with the Pewits.

Here at Emley AFC we have built a strong academy with U18 and U21 sides helping to develop local players.

The partnership will provide a platform for talented Wooldale players to try and progress in to the Emley Academy and, perhaps, beyond into the first team. It will also work the other way giving our younger players and those on the periphery of the squad a chance to get game time with a local team.

Emley will also be able to advise and support Wooldale as they make their way up the Huddersfield football pyramid.

Emley AFC chairman Andrew Painten commented on the partnership by saying: “We are delighted to be linking up with Wooldale, they are a fantastic football club and one of the oldest in the area. They clearly have a drive to improve on and off the field which is great to see.

“At Emley we have a big focus on football being a game for all. We are a well run family club who supports and encourages everyone to enjoy and succeed in sport. We do this through our brilliant academy and we look forward to helping Wooldale develop as a football club on and off the pitch.”

Wooldale Wanderers, who are based in Holmfirth, were founded in 1919. They currently play in the Huddersfield District Football League, with their first team in the second division and second team playing in the fourth tier of the league. The club has over a hundred players and is looking to expand and move forward over the next few seasons.

On the partnership with Emley and describing the club as a whole, Wooldale Chairman Dominic Shellard commented: “We are delighted to be partnering with Emley AFC, I think the scheme is an amazing idea. It is a very generous scheme on the part of Emley, where they are willing to partner with us and share expertise and advice across a whole cross section of topics.

“I had a long conversation with the Chairman, Andrew, and we talked about three particular areas which we thought might be mutually beneficial. So the first area was helping us with our over 45s Masters team that we've just set up. The FA are very keen to get these teams up and running and when I spoke with Andrew that's one area we discussed.

“The second area is around procedures and processes like our safeguarding training and our first aid training and getting our coaches to do the basic FA Introduction to Coaching badges.

“To be able to partner with a club of such prestige, to give us advice on those types of aspects and all aspects of running a club is really important to us.

“The third thing we talked about was the possibility of us having any of Emley’s young players who are on the periphery of the squad. We might be able to give them regular game time in a men's football environment. That would be immense for us as well.

“We're very grateful indeed to be able to participate in the scheme.

“I think it's a win, win for everyone. We get advice and expert help. Emley gets to show the FA they are truly helping grassroots local clubs develop. So for me the spirit of this partnership is exactly how things should work.”

Finally Shellard explained about the future plans for the club and where they want to go.

He said: “We have a three year plan and so by the third year we want to be playing in the Huddersfield District Football League Premier Division. After that the sky's the limit. We recognise our limitations as well as our capabilities, but we really want to drive on and be the best we can be.

“We have three main elements to improving our club. Firstly, improving our clubhouse which we've already done. We are in discussions about improving our ground. And thirdly we want to ensure that our teams and players are succeeding to the best of their abilities.

“We look forward to working with everyone at Emley AFC over the next few weeks, months and years.”