Accolades for Wharfedale’s loyal servants (From Ilkley Gazette)

Accolades for Wharfedale’s loyal servants

7:20am Thursday 11th November 2010 in General

LONG service awards were presented by the president of the West Riding County Football Association to four prominent workers within Wharfedale footballing circles.

The West Riding County FA rewards those in the football community who have given long service and Peter Marsden, West Riding County FA president, attended a meeting of the Wharfedale Football Association to honour four of its members – a fifth Roy Hague was unable to attend.

Among those receiving the awards was the Wharfedale Association’s first ever lady vice-president Rachel O’Connor, of Yeadon who is Wharfedale Newspapers sports editor She received an award for 35 years service after starting out at the age of 18 as manager and founding secretary of Burley Rovers, a team of under-18 boys she set up in her home village of Burley-in-Wharfedale with the Wharfedale FA’s new secretary Keith Urquhart, who captained the team.

Rachel has gone on to serve the local footballing community in many ways but latterly as secretary of Guiseley Reserve team.

She is programme editor at Guiseley and is a past winner of the Wharfedale FA’s secretary of the year accolade and as a serving member of the Lancashire Football League management committee has won that league’s Gary Parkinson award for outstanding service to football.

She also shows a keen interest in Guiseley FC Ladies and was their clubman of the year.

She was elected to serve on the Wharfedale FA in 2002 and later became a vice president. She is involved with the Wharfedale FA youth committee helping to organise the team which plays in the County Minor Cup.

Wharfedale FA chairman David Martin, of Rodley, received an award for 45 years service having started out on the administrative side with Leeds YMCA back in 1962.

He later became secretary and treasurer of Farsley Celtic and is a former secretary of Guiseley. He served as a board member of the UniBond League. He was later fund raising manager at Garforth Town.

Martin served Horsforth St Margaret’s and was elected to serve on the Wharfedale FA executive in 2001. He was elected chairman in 2006.

David Knaggs, of Menston, has had a long association with the Ilkley Dynamo club and he received an award for 25 years service. He now serves as a Wharfedale representative on the West Riding County FA.

He has been secretary and chairman of Ilkley Dynamo and became a member of the Wharfedale FA Executive in 1984 before being elected a vice president in 1988. He was chairman of the Wharfedale Triangle League for four years.

In 2003-04 he was voted the Wharfedale FA’s secretary of the year.

Knaggs is also well-known as the drummer with local rock’n’roll covers band band Time Warp.

The fourth recipient, also of a 25 years service award, was Alan Wallace of Horsforth who has been a referees instructor and assessor in Wharfedale for many years.

He started as a referee and became treasurer of the Wharfedale Referees Association in 1983. He joined the Wharfedale FA Executive in 1988 and is a vice president and life member.

Bradford City fire survivor Roy Hague, of Guiseley, was unable to be present to accept his award for 35 years service.

He had a long association with the former Yeadon Celtic club where he was a player and served on the committee being chairman until 1991.

He was a club representative on the West Riding County Amateur League. He joined the Wharfedale FA Executive Committee in 1970 and is a life member having been chairman from 2000-2006.