SURFING CROYDE BAY: RECLAIM THE TRoPHY IN Our Fourth Annual Charity Football Match

On Saturday 15th August, Surfing Croyde Bay and the North Devon RNLI Lifeguards came together once again for our annual charity football match.

Now in its fourth year, the match has become a bit of a summer tradition. What started as some friendly competition between two local teams has grown into an evening that brings together staff, lifeguards, friends, family and plenty of familiar faces from around Croyde and North Devon.

Most importantly, it’s an opportunity to have some fun while using the event to raise awareness and support for local families and causes that really matter.

This year, we were supporting two local family causes: Jenson – “Jenson the Warrior” and Elliot – “Help Us Save Elliot”

There was also a little unfinished business on the football side of things.

Having lost to the Lifeguards for the past two years, we were becoming slightly concerned that the trophy was starting to feel a little too at home with them.

Kick-off at Georgeham

Kick-off was at 7 pm at Georgeham Playing Fields, with a good crowd coming down to support both teams.

Previous matches between us have tended to be pretty close affairs. This one… wasn’t.

Surfing Croyde Bay got off to a strong start and, for once, actually managed to turn plenty of chances into goals.

And after a little bit of detective work, we can officially confirm the final score:

Surfing Croyde Bay 6 – 0 North Devon RNLI Lifeguards.

Leading the way was Tom Cox, who clearly turned up taking the whole thing far more seriously than the rest of us and helped himself to a hat-trick.

Unfortunately, Tom’s commitment to the cause came at a price. What we initially hoped was just a knock turned out to be a fractured elbow. So, while a hat-trick in a 6 – 0 win isn’t a bad evening’s work, we’re not sure he’d recommend the method! We wish Tom a speedy recovery and hopefully he’ll be back in action soon.

The other three goals came courtesy of Matt Beveridge, Simon Hope and Joe Skinner, who each added one to complete a fairly convincing 6-0 victory.

After two years of defeat to the Lifeguards, it was a pretty good way to bring the trophy back to Surfing Croyde Bay.

We’re sure the Lifeguards will have their own version of events. Fitness issues, questionable refereeing, tactical experimentation – we’re happy to listen to all excuses over the next 12 months.

More Than Just a Football Match

As much as we enjoy the rivalry, the football is only part of what makes this evening so special.

The real reason we all get together each year is to bring people together and use the occasion to shine a light on causes within our local community.

This year, we were proud to use the event to help raise awareness for Jenson – “Jenson the Warrior” and for Elliot – “Help Us Save Elliot.” Both causes are supporting local families, and it was brilliant to see so many people come together and get behind them.

And the support doesn’t have to stop now that the final whistle has blown.

It’s not too late to donate. If you’d like to support Jenson or Elliot and their families, you’ll find links to both fundraising pages at the bottom of this blog. Any donation, big or small, can help make a difference.

Celebrations at Braunton Cricket Club

Once the final whistle had gone and the trophy was safely back in Surfing Croyde Bay’s hands, everyone headed over to Braunton Cricket Club to continue the evening.

A huge thank you to Braunton Cricket Club for having us and to everyone who joined us afterwards. After reclaiming the trophy following two years of Lifeguard victories, we might have enjoyed the celebrations slightly more than usual this year!

Until Next Year…

A massive thank you to the North Devon RNLI Lifeguards for getting a team together once again and being such good sports. Whatever happens on the pitch, it’s always a great laugh, and we love that this has become an annual fixture.

A special thank you also has to go to Callum Mustard, who kindly took on the unenviable job of refereeing the match. Keeping two teams of very competitive surfers and lifeguards under control is no easy task, so thanks, Callum, for giving up your time and somehow making it through the full 90 minutes!

Thank you as well to everyone who came down to Georgeham Playing Fields, supported the players and helped us raise awareness for Jenson and Elliot’s causes.

Four years in, this has become much more than just a football match. It’s a chance to bring our community together, have a great evening and use the occasion to support local people and causes that really matter.

And after two years without it, the trophy is finally back at Surfing Croyde Bay.

Final score: Surfing Croyde Bay 6 – 0 North Devon RNLI Lifeguards.

Tom’s probably still telling people about the hat-trick, although he’ll be doing it with his arm in a sling for a while.

See you next year!