HONOUR BESTOWS STAFFORD LEGEND GORDON

A PARTY at Buckingham Palace awaits in June but honoured Stafford Town chairman Gordon Evans wants to make sure there’s two reasons to celebrate in the summer.

Evans, 75, founded the Midland League Division One club back in 1976 and is the current chairman.

Now Her Majesty has recognised him in the New Year’s Honours List and Evans will receive the British Empire Medal (BEM) for services to football in Stafford.

Town sat second bottom of the Step 6 league ahead of the weekend and Evans wants to see the club push on through the remaining months.

Evans told The NLP: “The party is something to look forward to but we want to climb the league for the rest of the season, and we are doing it through youth.

“I’m over the moon to receive the honour though and very humbled. I’m very grateful but it’s a huge team effort.

“I started the club 41 years. I had to leave in 1983 because I was away from home a couple of nights a week. But I returned in 2003 when the club had one team and was haemorrhaging money. Almost 15 years later and we’ve now got 31 teams and our own ground with a 3G pitch.”

It’s not the first time Stafford have been recognised by the Royals though, earning the Queen’s award for voluntary service in 2013.

Club vice-chairman Paul Beedell added: “If you cut him open, he’d bleed Stafford. He never liked cutting the lawn at his house but he was more than happy to mow the pitch.”