A huge congratulations to Ethan Jempson for winning the Linslade Galaxy FC Player of the month award for January! Ethan plays for our U14 Spartak team.

Business Development Manager, Carl Aldridge, from Gartec, the trophy sponsor, and who chose the winner out of the team players of the month, said, "It’s never easy moving clubs – new names & faces, expectations, styles of play etc, and Ethan seems like he has managed this seamlessly. Not only has he managed to fit in, but he has done so and exceeded."

Ethan was put forward for the award by his team coaches for the following reasons:

"Ethan has been unanimously selected by all three coaches to be Spartak’s Gartec player of the Month for January. Ethan only joined the team in September from our friends up the road and fitted into the team immediately where he initially slotted into a defensive role for the team. It was in training where Ethan caught our attention with his Mark Hughes type performances and his eye for goal and it was decided that we’ll put him up front, see how he gets on. The results were that Ethan has been an absolutely revolution up front where he’s put in several player of the match performances and also hit some 25 yard goal of the season contenders against Luton Allstars & Cheshunt Youth in recent weeks. Ethan has made the transition from playing at the back to scoring 6 in 6 games playing up front and looks like an absolute natural. Well done Ethan and Keep up the good work."

There were plenty of other excellent performances in matches and training across the Club throughout January and these are recognised by many of the coaches, who put forward these players as their team's player of the month.

James Buck (U7 Inter)
"Inter played their first 2 matches ever this month and James has played as a goalkeeper and a striker; so far yet to concede when he was in goal and scoring his first goal for the team when he was out on the pitch. James shows a good attitude to training and a really good understanding of getting into space on the pitch".

Vivienne North (U8 Meerkats)
"Vivienne has made a huge step forward in training in recent weeks, and has worked hard to make that improvement evident on the pitch. Perhaps most pleasing is Vivienne has gone from asking to stay off the pitch as a substitute, to practically begging for the chance to stay on longer and compete, such is her confidence increasing. Vivienne is keen to learn, listens intently to all the coaches, and we always want to find a player like that who represents what the Meerkats are about. We were recently heavily beaten by a much more developed side at this stage, and we reminded the girls how proud we are of their achievements which go beyond football results, and there is no other group of players in the country this coaching team would want to lead into battle"

Wilf Rattigan (U8 Titans)
"I've chosen Wilf as my player of the month, he's had tremendous attitude as always playing by example and leading by example. Furthermore, the support Wilf provides to all the players and coaches is a great testament to his character. Well done, Wilf".

James Thrower (U9 Atletico)
"We have only had one game back from Christmas and James showed real drive and determination in it. Throughout training, his effort and energy levels are amazing. His ability to listen and take on instructions is evident when he tackles the task at hand. He is certainly maturing with each session. Keep it up please"

Piper Walsh-Fleming (U9 Leopards)
"The Leopards only played their first match in January, and will properly join the league in February. Piper wins the award this month because she demonstrated that she was a proper team player and put her hand up to play in goal. Piper not only made great saves but has been really trying hard to focus and do her best at training."

Faith Scullion (U10 Bobcats)
"Faith has only recently joined the Bobcats, but has already had a huge influence on the team. Her bright personality brings out a smile in her teammates, and she has adapted brilliantly to the new team environment, scoring on her debut and picking up a couple of player of the match awards too."

Alex Miles (U10 Juve)
"Alex has had a great start to the season, he is growing every week in confidence, he is one of the most skillful players I have ever worked with, regularly running rings round other players just because he can, Alex is a great player to work with he's always happy and willing to learn, Alex is a very important part of our team and fundamental in our style of play, great work Alex keep it up mate, well done!"

Ewan Jones (U10 Wanderers)
"Ewan has consistently performed in training and in matches, always gives 100% effort and commitment, and has been an instrumental player in the team. Well done!"

Joseph Jeeves (U11 Barca)
"This is Joseph's first season at Galaxy and he has been a great addition to the Barca squad. Joseph is always positive and talkative and gets stuck in at training and on match days. Joseph can play as an outfield player (winger) or in goal, and in our one and only game in January, Joseph went in goal at the last minute and did a fantastic job. Joseph's kicking out of hand is amazing - he can boom the ball down the pitch! Keep being the positive young man that you are Joseph, and let's see what the rest of this season brings for you (hopefully outfield a bit more!)"

Hollie Finn (U11 Lionesses)
"Hollie Lionesses player of the month for her 100% effort, determination and fight in midfield. She has had some cracking performances helping us go on to win our 1st game in 5 matches and always works hard to keep our games competitive."

Ivy-Mae Jefferd (U11 Panthers)
"I have chosen Ivy as the Panthers player of the month this time because her work rate, passion and desire make her stand out week in week out. She always gives 100% and works tirelessly for the team whether that’s battling hard to defend or working her way forward to put the team on the front foot with a solo run or a searching pass to one of the wide players she is always thinking about the next option which really helps drive the panthers forward. Ivy plays a number of different positions based on the teams needs with her primary roles at the back in defence or central midfield, both roles that are really demanding physically and mentally and she constantly takes it in her stride and delivers her best every game."

Isabella Rodriguez (U12 Jaguars)
"Isabella (Bella) is the captain of the Jaguars and has what you could call a captains month in January! With the weather putting to bed the games in early January the Jaguars, it placed even more emphasis on training this month for nominations. Bella’s attitude to training has been top notch in January and she has applied herself and led by example in everything asked as her. She has undertaken every drill with a good attitude and has then applied that to the matches which has seen her defending taking on another level. This was then rounded off with a player of the match performance in the last match of January which saw the Jaguars keep a clean sheet, with Bella central to organising the defence and being there when we needed her. Congrats Bella and keep it coming!"

Bella Hardy (U12 Lions)
"Bella joined us in May and has been a superb addition to the Lions. Bella is a wonderful technically adept midfielder whose understanding of the game is absolutely fantastic. Bella uses her high football IQ to make space, identify incisive passes, make clever runs and score several goals. Bella is an excellent example of the values that the Lions demonstrate every week, being competitive; a real team player; a hard worker, and someone who knows how to have fun. On the rare occasions when Bella is not playing football or some form of sports, Bella is known for being a brilliant and caring friend to many of the Lions who she knows at school, which only helps her and the team play together as a team on the pitch.".

Fin Lake (U12 Porto)
"Fin has worked hard in defence this month, playing as a right or left back. We've seen improvements in his positioning and tackling, and a continued willpower to succeed. It's been great to see him overlapping and getting involved in attacks. He also stepped up for us in goal, which shows a selfless attitude to help the team."

Chiara Carrozza (U13 Lynxes)
"At the end of last year we spoke to Chiara and asked her to find her confidence in her abilities on the pitch, to see what we all could see, that she has great skill and with a bit of confidence would have a big impact on our games. New year came and Chiara has definitely found that confidence. The last couple of games we have asked Chiara to play in different positions. She has adapted to this really well and has made plenty of important tackles and blocks that have kept us in the games. Chiara has shown some brilliant ball skills and has made some excellent passes cutting through the opposition, and taking advantage of being able to play left or right footed. Keep up the good work, well done Chiara."

Belle Sear (U13 Pumas)
"Belle is a player that can play in various positions when asked to in matches and will always give her best in those positions. She has a great left foot, and so provides us with an advantage over most teams when she's played on the left hand side. Strong and determined in her play, her attitude at training is great and she always wants to learn and improve. We played two matches in January with her scoring one goal and providing one assist having played centre back, left back and left midfield in those matches. Well done!"

Caelan Adams (U14 Lazio)
"Caelan had a tough run before Christmas missing a number of games through illness and injury. However, Caelan's bounced back after the break, showing fantastic form over both our matches in January. Firstly, putting in a Player of the Match performance at Crawley Green, in particular with a great display of tackling against some of the best forwards in the league. Then the following week against Ampthill, being an absolute rock in central defence, massively contributing to a clean sheet that helped secure a win for the team. Well done, Caelan, great to have you back in the team each week."

Sebastian Barnett (U15 Ajax)
"Seb has shown tremendous consistency in his performances during January. He has played in all 3 defensive positions across the month to an extremely high standard. Always giving 100% both on matchdays and during training.".

Well done to all the nominated team player of the months - keep up the great work!