Football Focus Issue 73 | Page 81

Coggeshall Town Coggeshall Town FOOTBALL CLUB Chairman Graeme Smith took full control of Coggeshall Town Football Club at the start of the 2014-15 season after being involved in an advisory position the previous season. He recently took the time to tell us more about the club, saying, “The history of the club was the main attraction to me as Coggeshall Town is one of the oldest clubs based in Essex being formed as early as 1878.” “The club were competing in The Essex and Suffolk Border League at the point when I became involved and I saw a real opportunity for the club to develop on and off the pitch. Coggeshall Town had struggled for many years previous to me taking over with the club just happy to survive. The club had its best years in the mid-eighties and early nineties and I saw a real chance to bring back those good times to the club and take it on even further. “I became team manager at that point, assisted by long term friend and ex Colchester United professional John Pollard and led the team to a 6th place finish in the Essex and Suffolk Border League. During that season I invested heavily in the infrastructure of the club with all facilities at the club being upgraded. “The team went on to do the double the following season by winning the Essex and Suffolk Border League and the League Cup to achieve promotion to the Eastern Counties League Division One. The following season was also very successful with the team finishing second and again achieving promotion for the second season in a row to take their place in the Eastern Counties League Premier Division. “The most challenging part of being Chairman of the club is the sheer amount of time it takes up. Balancing my www.footballfocusmag.com 81