Wizards complete merger with Woolston

FOLLOWING the formal completion of the merger between Woolston Rovers and Warrington Wizards, the focus is now turned to preparing for the forthcoming season as a bright new dawn promises to propel the great club back into the higher echelons of the amateur game.
The club is awaiting an answer from the National Conference League regarding their application to re-join the league this coming season and are very hopeful of being given the green light in the next two weeks. This will give the club the opportunity to get back to where they belong.
The Open Age will be called Woolston Rovers but the Junior Section will be re-named Woolston Rovers Wizards and the club as a whole will come together as one in order to ensure that the ambition to reach the top again is accomplished.
Club Chairman John Welch said, “We are fully committed to making this new era a complete success from the word go. We have got in place an excellent forward thinking committee comprising of Wizards and Woolston people that will push the club forward and a very talented coaching set up led by Head Coach Mike Grady. He will also liaise with the Junior Section so that everybody is fully aware of what is going on. We have a brilliant set up at Monks Sports Club, the training venues are all in place, we have sponsors who want to be associated with us and we really cannot wait to get the season underway. We believe that what we have put in place will attract new quality players to complement the ones we already have on board.”
Junior Section Chairman Darren Geritas said, “This is a really great opportunity for the club to move forward. We as a Junior Section have voted unanimously to add the Wizards name onto the end of Woolston Rovers as it will give us a great identity and we will be able to have theme days using the Wizards name and we are certain that the youngsters will love them.
“Professional clubs all have mascots that their fans can identify to and hopefully we will be able to us the Wizard in that respect. I am delighted that the merger has taken place; I was a player at the Wizards right at the beginning of their existence so for them to have now merged with Woolston is absolutely fantastic and I know that they will bring a lot of quality to the club to compliment what we already have.”
Head Coach Mike Grady said, “Personally, I am honoured to go into this new link up as Head Coach; I am under no illusion as to how tough it will be but it is a challenge that I will get stuck into and give it everything I have got. I am confident that we will be where we want to be at come the end of the league season. I am really looking forward to getting started with a good, tough pre-season and working towards hopefully competing in the NCL.
“I look forward to working with Chris Ball on the coaching front and I have also brought Mike Stout and Ryan Jones in to assist me; those two will also be playing so that in itself is a boost to myself and the team. Mike and Ryan both bring a mixture of experience and enthusiasm with them and I know from speaking to people at Woolston how highly Chris is rated at the club.
“I know that Woolston were the best amateur club in the country in the nineties, so the challenge is exciting as we aim to work our way back to the top. I cannot see any reason why we can’t with the squad, backroom staff and committee that we have in place. This is an added bit of pressure for us all but I am sure we will thrive on that.
“Woolston have won numerous consecutive promotions over the last few seasons and add this to the link up with the Wizards players who not long ago enjoyed their own success makes for a very strong looking squad with plenty of healthy competition.”
Pre-season training for the Open Age commences on Tuesday 8th January on the 3G pitch at Lysander High School from 7-8pm. All old players from Woolston and the Wizards along with any new players wishing to get involved in this exciting journey will be made very welcome.
There will be a Registration Day for the Junior Section and the Open Age on Saturday, January 12 at Monks Sports Club from 12 noon onwards. Please come along and get yourself signed up for this great club and it will also be a chance for you to meet everybody else who is involved throughout the club.
For any further queries, please contact Dave Whalley via email: [email protected]