Nice to see Bath’s MP, Wera Hobhouse ‘flying the flag’ for local football club Larkhall Athletic FC in front of the Elizabeth Tower at the Houses of Parliament.
It follows a visit she made to the local club for Sunday’s game against Moneyfields. During the visit, Ms Hobhouse watched a training session with the junior girls’ teams and then watched the women’s senior team.
The women’s senior team play in the Women’s National League and are the most established team in Bath. The team, which is the most senior women’s team in Bath, compete in the Women’s National League and compete against teams including AFC Bournemouth, Cardiff City, Portishead, and Southampton and Swindon Town.
The club, which was established in 1914, supports over 500 players from the local area, and works with local schools as well as hosting the City of Bath Petanque Club and local skittles teams. The women’s setup at Larkhall boasts 150 young girls across all age groups.
Larkhall takes pride in being a truly local club, with the community at heart and a vision to develop football and their ground to create a community space for the area. The club has an ongoing project to change the playing surface to 3G which will widen access to the facility and help the club work with disadvantaged groups.
Following the visit, Bath MP Wera Hobhouse commented:
“I had a great time watching the football at Larkhall Athletic at the weekend. It’s great to see the women’s game flourishing. The setup at Larkhall is fantastic and it was good to watch the women’s senior team, although the result, unfortunately, did not go their way!
“Football is a huge part of many people’s lives both in Bath and across the UK. Football is for many people a part of their identity, their community, their escape from everyday life and a huge benefit to them both mentally and physically. Clubs like Larkhall are so important and I am fully behind the club and its development.
“It’s great to see so many young girls and women playing football. It’s important that we build on this fantastic success of the Lionesses and support clubs like Larkhall as they go from strength to strength.”
Paul Rankin, Chairman of Larkhall Athletic FC commented:
“We were delighted to host Wera’s visit to our Club, the young girls, women and volunteers were all pleased to meet her and it was satisfying to know that Wera fully understood the value and contribution we make to the development of the girl’s game and to the local community by providing excellent facilities and opportunities to play the game.”
“Our development aspiration to create a new 3G surface will help us grow further and we appreciate the support and encouragement that Wera was able to offer.”
