The Minis Festival last Sunday was a bustling event, attended by more than 900 children from 12 clubs! Bury entered 16 teams across the age groups from under-7 to under-12. The day began with a bit of drama, as a couple of cars were left on pitch 3 from the previous day's match against Colchester! Thankfully, through the power of social media, both cars were moved just before the under-9s kicked off. All teams started at 10am and largely finished on time, thanks to the excellent organisation by the coaches and team managers. Fortunately, the rain from earlier in the week didn’t return, and aside from one boggy part of pitch 4, the pitches were in good condition.

The BBQ, sweet stall, raffle, and the Java Coffee Club were busy throughout the day, raising funds for the club. The drone footage captured by Beanstalk Media truly showcases how packed the festival was. St John Ambulance were in attendance but thankfully not too busy and enjoyed their new location in the Portable Spaces overlooking pitch 1. A big thank you to our medal sponsor, Brookes UK School. The highlight of the day was, as always, handing out the medals, especially to the under-7s, who were playing their first matches of the season and receiving their first (of many!) medals. It was also fantastic to have the 1XV team and Jacob present, as well as Josh Barton from Northampton Saints Community.

Special thanks must go to those who volunteered on the day, either with parking or helping at the sweet stall: Abby, Alice, Heidi, Matt, Benjamin, Laura, Jack, Claire, Richard, Neil, and Sarah Jane. Thanks also to all the volunteer coaches and team managers from Bury, as well as John Wetton, who organised all the pools and coordinated with the attending clubs, working with Alex Rowles to produce the online programme. All of this came together on the day, and I think we can still proudly claim to be the best Minis Festival in the Eastern Counties! There were plenty of happy kids, compliments from coaches, and not too many complaints from parents – always a good barometer of success!

Lastly, there are a couple of unclaimed raffle prizes. If you’re a winner, please get in touch with me at minischair@bserufc.co.uk to claim your prize:

STC Ball Signed by Men's 1st XV – Paige Worth
BSE Branded Golf Balls – Daniel Myers
Health Hub Day Pass – Claire Elliott

Max, from Official Media Partner, Beanstalk Media, captured some amazing drone footage and photos, which can be viewed here.