FAQ

What age groups do you cater for?

We are a community grassroots junior football club run by volunteers who are all parents of players. We provide football for girls and boys from under 6s (year 1) up to under 19s (youth / year 13). We do not provide football for younger age groups (reception or younger) however we are able to recommend local providers or other clubs who do.

As a guide when you enquire about joining Ty Celyn Junior FC, please state which age group you are interested in. These related to the academic school year the child is in.

Under 6s – Year 1

Under 7s – Year 2

Under 8s – Year 3

Under 9s – Year 4

Under 10s – Year 5

Under 11s – Year 6

Under 12s – Year 7

Under 13s – Year 8

Under 14s – Year 9

Under 15s – Year 10

Under 16s – Year 11

Youth Squad – Year 12 & 13

Do you have girls only squads?

Yes, we are very excited to be increasing the provision for girls only squads within the club and currently have 3 girls only squads ranging from under 7s/8s, Under 10s/u11s and an under 12s squad. We are aiming to increase this so that girls only squads are available across all age groups.

How much are player membership fees?

Player subscription fees are set every year during the club’s annual general meeting (AGM). The fees cover all winter training facility costs, players’ registration fees with the Football Association of Wales (FAW), public liability, personal insurance, match kits, coaching and first aiding qualifications for volunteers involved in delivering football sessions and generally an end of season party for the squad they’re involved in. Our fees for this season 2022/23 are £150 per player. There are concessions for siblings and if the parent is a formal volunteer.

Where do the teams train?

As much as we would love to own or manage our own facility, unfortunately winter training sessions are run at various locations throughout Cardiff. Generally each age group will be allocated a 3G in indoor venue to train at during the winter. Please go to the individual team information to see what days, times and venues that team train at.

During the summer, the teams come off the 3G venues and start training at the local parks. To make sure the players feel part of a club, most age groups train at Roath Recreational Ground on a Monday evening from 6pm to 8pm with start times dependent on the age group.

Winter training generally starts middle of October until the end of March.

Where and when are league football matches played?

Age groups form Under 7s to Under 16s play in the Cardiff and District League (C&D). The youth team play in the South Wales Youth League (SWYL). No league games are arranged for under 6s however we do trend and arrange some friendly matches with other local clubs.

We generally call age groups from under 7s to under 11s as ‘small sided or mini football’ and under 12s to Under 16s as ‘juniors’ . Small sided matches are always played on a Saturday morning. The younger age groups i.e. under 7s and under 8s tend to play on 3G pitches only either at Cardiff University playing fields in Llanrumney, Leckwith or Ocean Park 3G.

Age groups from under 9s to under 16s, matches are also played on the Saturday morning and are arranged by the Cardiff and District League organisers. These are played at various grass pitch venues across Cardiff.

The youth team generally play on a Sunday morning or afternoon dependent on availability of venues, teams and referees.

When does the football season start and finish?

The football season generally starts from July until May however football league fixtures start at the second Saturday in September and finish in April/May. Dependent on how many fixtures become postponed during the season due to bad weather or poor pitch conditions, depends on when exactly league matches finish.

For Ty Celyn FC, generally squads start training early to mid August ready for the new season then will continue training up to June/July time. This is dependent on the coaches and players summer sports commitments with some teams continuing to training through the summer. Other teams will take a break from June until August, it is very much down to the coaches, players and parents to decide.

What kit do I need to buy for my child?

The club provides the match day kit that consists of Socks, Shorts and a Match Top. We request that Players wear the following mandatory items such as Shin pads and Football boots. For training, we are generally flexible on what players wear (i.e. shorts, tops etc) but they must wear shin pads and football boots as mandatory. We also recommend that players always bring a water bottle with them to training at match days.

How does my child join the club?

The first thing to check is what age group your son or daughter will be interested in joining, please see above. Some ages groups do tend to be more popular than others and sometimes there are waiting lists for those age groups. The first thing is to email us via email:info@tycelynfc.co.uk and we will direct your enquiry to the coaches and team secretary for that age group. Providing that there are no waiting lists, the coaches will decide whether they are taking on any new players. If there is a waiting list, the players name is then added to the waiting list and the coaches will contact the parents when a space becomes available.

All players need to be registered with the Football Association of Wales (FAW). We will ask you to fill out a club player’s registration form and a player and parent code of conduct form. We then take the information detailed on the players registration form and kick start a formal players registration with the FAW. We will then provide you with the formal FAW player registration form where you will check the information, sign and return to us. We then complete the registration on the FAW player registration online portal called COMET. Although players will be able to start training once the our player registration form is provided to us, they will not be permitted to start league fixtures until their formal registration has been confirmed. This can take up to 1 to 2 weeks. We request that forms are returned to us as soon as possible as the FAW player registration window is only 5 days once started.

All personal information is held securely in line with out GDPR and privacy processes and procedures.

What if my child was born outside of the UK?

If the player was born outside of the UK, the Football Association of Wales (FAW) may request that further parental information is provided. In this instance, we will liaise with you on what information is required.

My child previously played for another club, can they transfer across to Ty Celyn FC?

Yes, providing that the coaches have agreed to take on the new player, if the player was previously registered with another welsh football club, the transfer across to our club is generally very straightforward. All we require is the FAW player registration number, Date of Birth and player’s full name and the transfer can be completed very quickly.

If the player is transferring from another football association i.e. the English FA, this will be classed as an international player transfer and requires us to request permission from FIFA. Generally these permissions take much longer to obtain than a conventional transfer or player registration and can take several weeks if not longer.

Are all volunteers/coaches/first aiders DBS checked?

Safeguarding within the club is paramount and everyone who volunteers for the club is required to undergo a DBS check via the FAW. All volunteers at Ty Celyn FC have been DSB checked and formally registered on the FAW COMET registration portal. All coaches are qualified to minimum football leaders awards (level 1) coaching qualifications. All first aiders hold professional and recognised first aid / medical qualifications or have obtained the FAW emergency first aid qualification.

How do I become a volunteer for Ty Celyn Junior FC?

We would not be able to deliver community football if it wasn’t for the hard work and dedication of our volunteers. Everyone involved with the club is generally a parent of a player and we are very lucky to have a high volunteer to player ratio compared to other clubs in Cardiff. Everyone has skills and experience that they can bring to the club and not necessarily be linked to coaching or first aiding but being involved in organising. Sometimes just being a team helper makes all the difference.

Apart from a huge sense of fulfilment from being part of the wider community organisation, volunteering is a great way of meeting new friends, developing new skills and increasing self confidence. Our cub community is a thriving one and also can provide business connections.

One thing we also offer when volunteering for Ty Celyn FC are concessions on players’ annual subscription fees therefore rewarding volunteers for their contribution.

If you are interested in becoming a coach, first aider, team secretary or a general helper or evening centrally with the administration of the club, please get in touch with us or speak with the coaches of the age group your child is involved with. No volunteers are turned away.

I’m interested in Sponsoring a team, how do I go about it and how much does it cost?

Most of the squads in Ty Celyn Junior FC are sponsored which is fantastic. This massively helps with the costs of delivering grassroots community football. Being a sponsor of a team can hugely benefit the person, business or company and be very rewarding. If you are interested in sponsoring a team, please initially speak with the coaches and team secretary for that team you want to sponsor. They will then direct you to the core committee and treasurer. The core committee will then advise on the typical costs involved. This is balanced on how much you are interested in sponsoring the team. In return, we offer to promote your business or services on our many social media channels and your logo will appear on the team match day tops.