High Peak league gears up for season four

Excitement is in the air as Sunday sees the start of the fourth season for the High Peak Junior Football League (HPJFL). 

The league has come a long way since it first started in September 2015 and, as it prepares for the anticipated big kick-off this weekend, has quadrupled in size from 14 teams to 48 this term. 

During the summer, it has also received prestigious Charter Standard status - which recognises commitment, quality and achievement - from Derbyshire FA, who will be in attendance on Sunday to formally present this. 

Having previously catered for Under 8s to Under 11s teams, HPJFL has further expanded this season to Under 7s, who will play on Saturday mornings, and is growing all the time - much to the delight of chairman Jon Matthews. 

"When the vision for the league was first muted six years ago, it was always envisaged that it would cover all the mini football ages from Under 7s through to Under 11s," he told the Glossop Chronicle.

"It's the most pleasing thing for me that we can say we provide that now. The fact we only started at Under 8s shows how far both the league and clubs in the High Peak have come in a short space of time." 

The league - which has called upon New Mills company SHM to revamp their logo, which retains the identity first designed by local girl Emily Mills in 2015 - is based at one central hub, at the 3G pitch at Glossopdale School's Newshaw Lane site.

It's something Jon feels benefits all participating clubs. 

"We pride ourselves in the fact we are a local league, which means there is somewhere on the doorstep for kids to play," Jon, from Simmondley, explained.

"There was a time where clubs weren't really developing because they were struggling and parents had to drive to the likes of Manchester and Chesterfield to get their children to matches. 

"The fact we're based in one place and all the pitches are close together is a massive thing for clubs. For example, it's only a 20-25 minute journey from Buxton, where a couple of our clubs come from. 

"The growth of HPJFL over the last four years has also coincided with the growth of players and age groups of all the High Peak clubs, which is testament to them too. 

"Soccer schools have also started, taking in children from five years old. We only have five Under 7s teams at the moment but we provide full coverage of mini football which is something I'm very passionate about. We have in the region of 500 children registered to the league who will be playing football at some stage this season."

The next step forward for the league is to introduce girls football, which has been in the national spotlight during the summer as a result of the success of the Women's World Cup in France, and older age groups beyond Under 11s. 

"Football is always growing and girls football is seeing a big growth at the moment," Jon went on. "The plan now is looking at how we can accommodate girls football over the next year or two. 

"The big thing holding us back is a suitable second venue. The new Glossop Juniors development at Cemetery Road, which is due to be completed in September 2020, is another possible local venue where we could host girls football. 

"We have an Under 8s girls team from SK Vipers who have entered as one of our five Under 7s teams this season, which is great. 

"Another proposal we have is to start a High Peak Youth Football League for Under 12s to Under 16s teams to play on a home and away basis next year. There's a long way to go but I don't think it's out of reach. 

"My vision is for teams to have one year of nine-a-side and then stay in the league but move to 11-a-side, so we could have Under 7s to Under 11s on the 3G and Under 12s to Under 16s on grass pitches - all still at the Glossopdale site. I think it can be done." 

For now, as the 2019/20 campaign progresses, HPJFL are looking for more Under 7s teams to join. They are also bidding for more volunteers to help run the league and more qualified referees to take charge of matches. 

"We're looking to grow the Under 7s offering over the season," Jon said. "Any clubs or teams can sign up and pay as you play, so they could play once a fortnight or once a month if they wanted to as we have a spare pitch every week at the moment. 

"I'd like to stress that our league is non-competitive and is about playing football in a safe and friendly environment. The league's ethos is about children enjoying playing football. I always say on our Facebook page - it's the children game, let them play. 

"We always welcome new volunteers who are willing to help the league in any way - whether it be parents of children who play in the league or anyone else. 

"We now have two rounds of matches on Saturday morning from 8.45am to 10am and matches on Sunday from 8.45am to 3pm so there's always opportunities for qualified referees who live in the area to get involved too." 

Anyone who is interested in entering an Under 7s team, being a volunteer or being a referee in the HPJFL can get in touch with Jon by ringing 07802 553655 or emailing jon@itecpower.co.uk.