Seven community heroes to be honoured at EFL Community Weekend
Argyle’s Sky Bet Championship fixture against Cardiff City on Saturday, 20 January has been selected to be a part of a new EFL initiative aimed at honouring the people that make a difference in the community.
Local community heroes will be celebrated up and down the country as the EFL, EFL Trust, 72 EFL Clubs and their Community Club Organisations launch the first-ever EFL Community Weekends.
The activation aims to show the breadth and depth of club community work to match-going fans across the League. Argyle’s home game against the Bluebirds is a chance for fans to hear the stories of people who have had their lives changed or even saved by their Club’s community work.
Senior figures at the Club and Trust have nominated seven special individuals who have made a significant impact on the community. We are delighted to announce your Argyle EFL Community Champions:
Alec Brenton
Alec is Cornish born but Argyle through and through and has held multiple roles with the Club and Trust across his long and proud career. A career which has spanned decades and began with Al running the Argyle youth team and Centre of Excellence, supporting and mentoring local young people in football.
Al became involved in the Trust when the EFL introduced the original Community Scheme, and he has dedicated the last 25 years leading ‘Matchday Magic’ at Home Park Stadium - a matchday provision inspiring local young people and creating the next generation of the Green Army.
Al’s passion for the club and professionalism has made him a firm favourite at Argyle and within the city.
Colin Bunney
Colin has shown incredible dedication to Argyle over two decades. Colin has been a Community Coach for the Trust, inspiring young people in schools through football, and has been the Ball Assistant Manager at Home Park for nearly 20 years.
Whilst working a full-time job, Colin originally volunteered with the Trust to help in schools, and with community programmes on weekends.
Colin has facilitated over a hundred birthday parties for local young people, was instrumental in setting up our first disability football sessions and has coached at numerous soccer roadshows in the city. Colin’s passion is to inspire local young people and get them active and motivated and develop them as people.
Debbie Moss
Debbie's hard work, dedication, and enthusiasm for Project 35, our social impact project aimed at tackling poverty in partnership with Ginsters, has been inspiring since its launch 18 months ago.
Debbie is the Ginsters Brand Communications Coordinator, and she has not only coordinated staff from Ginsters and Cornwall Bakery on Project 35 initiatives but has also run in the Project 35 charity Green Army Fun Run and has importantly volunteered her own time helping at dedicated roadshows, Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) events, and fan appeals on matchdays.
Debbie will always go above and beyond for her community and to continue to build on the many successes of our award-winning project.
Pete May
Pete joined the Trust in the late 1990s, coaching young people at soccer schools and within local schools alongside his full-time career as a police officer. Pete went on to support girls’ football, providing opportunities for female players, coaching, and feeding players through the pathway.
Pete was integral to the success of the first ever cohorts of the National Citizen Service (NCS) and supporting young people to get active, engaged, and off the streets.
A true gentleman, Pete has never seen his community outreach work at the Trust as a job due to how much enjoyment he gets from making a positive difference to the lives of local young people.
Rob Cowsill
Rob has shown unwavering support for the Trust having been impressed by the diversity and quality of community outreach work delivered to vulnerable members of our community when discovering our work three years ago. Rob is Director at Devon firm SW Law & Finance, and the organisation had a mission to make a positive difference to the lives of local people.
Rob and SW Law’s generosity has seen them headline sponsor our last two charity golf days, raising thousands for our new Powerchair Football sessions and Project 35. Rob has dedicated his own time as a Pledge 35 volunteer for Project 35 and supporting young people through talks at our National Citizen Service (NCS) sessions, even donating his fee to support people living in poverty.
Rob and the team have taken part in charity football and golf tournaments, and Rob has given numerous donations to support hamper appeals and ex-forces veterans.
Scott Cooksley
Scott has been the Club Secretary for Plymouth Argyle Women for three-and-a-half years, starting as a volunteer before recently being rewarded for his hard work by being integrated in a part-time role to aid the development on the club. His dedication and passion for improving the women's game off the pitch has made him a vital member of the team, overseeing a period of incredible growth for the women’s game in the region.
Scott will always go above and beyond for the Club, despite also working full-time, fulfilling his important duties with the highest level of professionalism and care, but also supporting the team in any way he can. Scott will support the players, the manager and ensures the women’s team is active in the community and supporting our vital outreach work.
Steve Aspinall
Steve has volunteered at the Trust for several years, dedicating many hours to our community work. Most proudly, Steve helps at Christmas delivering hampers to those in need but also takes part in our fundraising activities to raise vital funds for Project 35, our disability sessions, and veterans.
Steve is one of the first faces young visitors will be greeted by on a match day at Home Park. Steve volunteers at every home game, inspiring the next generation of the Green Army through stadium tours, and facilitating a magical day as young people from across the region meet their heroes and lead the team out at the Theatre of Greens.
Steve’s dedication to the Trust and Club, and his personality has made us all proud to be able to call him our friend.
Argyle’s Community Heroes will attend Home Park as special guests on Saturday, and will be presented with a bespoke framed shirt, referencing their incredible commitment and hard work to the community.
Argyle Community Trust's Chief Executive Officer Mark Lovell said: “We are extremely grateful for the incredible work of our community heroes and the commitment they show. This is a great opportunity to honour them and celebrate these special people, people I am proud to have worked with and to call my friends.
“We are delighted to welcome them as guests of honour in front of a sold-out Home Park and give them the recognition they deserve for their hard work and dedication.”
Trevor Birch, CEO of the EFL, said: “Community remains a fundamental part of the EFL and its 72 Clubs’ identity, so we are delighted to launch the latest strand of activity in this area – the EFL Community Weekends. The work undertaken by Clubs has a hugely positive impact on the participants of the various programmes and the towns and cities where people live.
“Football continues to reach parts of local areas that others simply cannot and successfully addresses challenges linked to health, wellbeing, education and employment alongside helping to keep communities connected. We look forward to celebrating this incredible work in front of match-going fans over the coming two weekends across our network.”
Liam Scully, Chair of the EFL Trust, said: “Our Clubs and Club Community Organisations engage more than 840,000 people from EFL communities all year round. To be able to showcase the Club community work as a collective and acknowledge the work of participants and programme leaders, many of whom are volunteers, further highlights the unique ability of our network.
