Champions of the community

Rovers unveil exciting new initiatives

Albion Rovers are set to launch their first ever disability and mental health teams.

The Coatbridge side will be unveiling their latest initiatives over the next couple of months as part of the ‘ Rovers in the Community’ project.

Both teams will train at the Scottish League One side’s Cliftonhill home and are in the process of looking for players to establish their squads.

First team coach Tony McMinn, who is working with club bosses and manager Darren Young, is delighted to see the unique project get underway.

And the innovative move comes as the club prepares to continue their hugely popular football camps for kids.

The Easter Football Camp will kick-off on April 3, with a second club running from April 10.

They will hold training sessions at Cliftonhill with the goal of setting up teams for all ages – and Tony encouraged others to get in touch with the club if they are looking to launch something similar.

“If there is a group out there that feel we can help them then we are more than happy to do just that,” he said.

“Funding is in place from the North Lanarkshire Health consortium so we are looking to get going.

“There are successful models out there. We can very much follow in their footsteps.

“We will have a disability football class that will run at Cliftonhill, and we will have some fun games up and running.

“We are open to anyone, and are meeting with some of the additional support needs (ASN) schools with a view to setting up an Albion Rovers football team.”

Tony is keen for Rovers to make their mark on Coatbridge off the park – having enjoyed promotions and Monklands derby success in recent years, as well as January’s glamour Scottish Cup tie against Celtic being beamed to television viewers across Britain and beyond.

“When I first came in with Darren [ Young] we didn’t have this kind of structure in place at the club,” he continued.

“We are now in year three and this is something we looked at.

“We want to have a positive impact on the community. It’ll snowball, and it is already beginning to.

“We have tried to do it properly and make it possible to manage it and get going.

“We are trying to create an identity in the community – whether we are everyone’s first team or second team it doesn’t matter to us as long as we are making a change and making the area better.”

To find out more visit the Albion Rovers in the Community social media sites.

We want to have a positive impact on the community