A TRAILER maker is championing a football youth academy at one of the world’s oldest clubs.

Flint Town United has secured a sponsorship deal with Ifor Williams Trailers (IWT) which has factories in Deeside and Denbighshire.

It sees the famous IWT logo emblazoned on the back of the Under 12 squad’s black and white vertically striped shirts.

The Leader: Rhys Davies, IWT manager of Deeside site and Karl Russell, Director Flint Town United FC with the under 12's Flint Town United Academy team. Rhys Davies, IWT manager of Deeside site and Karl Russell, Director Flint Town United FC with the under 12's Flint Town United Academy team. (Image: Flint Town United Academy)

Rhys Davies, site manager at the IWT Deeside plant, visited a training session to see the players in action at the Essity Stadium on Marsh Road, a short walk from historic Flint Castle.

He said: “I’m a big football fan myself and have played for a few local teams. It’s great to be proactive in the community and support these young players at a local level.

“Flint Town United has an enviable reputation for its high standards of training and coaching potential new stars of the game, you only have to look at its past record to see that. So, we are more than pleased to help them achieve future goals on the pitch and off.

“The friendly welcome and the enthusiasm of everyone whether playing, coaching or volunteering on the sidelines, is heartening to see.

"At Ifor Williams Trailers we have a history of helping local causes and this is among the best I have come across. We are delighted to be contributing to its continued success.”  

The club was founded more than 130 years ago in 1886 and its president is former Liverpool and Wales dynamo Ian Rush, regarded as one of Anfield’s best strikers of all time.

Flint Town United director Karl Russell coaches the Academy’s Under 12s, assisted by Kristian Harding Pears.

He added they are in good company because the trailer firm is also the shorts sponsor of near neighbours Wrexham AFC, which is co-owned by Hollywood TV and movie legends Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds.

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Karl said: “They are in a different league to ourselves but we have close links with Wrexham and good relations with most of the other clubs in North Wales and across the border in the North West.

"Not every player is going to get to the stage where football can realistically be their full time career but our academy is now working on setting up an educational arm which can signpost them to career options around the sport and other vocational professions.”

The club is a not-for-profit organisation which receives an annual financial contribution from the Football Association for Wales. It also relies heavily on its own fundraising, and sponsorship deals to survive.