Players on a local football team can hold their heads high despite losing a league cup final.
Having formed only two years ago, Congleton Vale, which plays in the Staffordshire County Senior League Division Two North, managed to reach the Macron Trophy final at the end of the season.
It was quite a feat, as the teams the club beat in each round played in the league above.
Vale, whose home ground is at Eaton Bank Academy on Jackson Road, lost 0-2 to Cresswell Wanderers from Walsall in the final.
Before that, Vale had beaten Stafford Town on penalties in round one after the tie had ended 3-3. They beat Hanley Town 3-1 in the second round, hammered Keele University’s first team 5-1 in the quarter-final and beat Ashbourne Reserves on penalties in the semi-final after a 1-1 full-time score.
Vale’s manager Ben Candlin said the club’s cup run had been “nothing short of remarkable for a club of our age”.
The team was formed in 2024 as a senior side to help players from the long-established Vale Juniors FC to progress in the adult game.
It has a squad of almost 20 players who have progressed from Vale Juniors, one of the largest junior clubs in the area, with more than 30 teams from U7 through to U18.
Explaining how Congleton Vale formed, Mr Candlin said: “Vale Juniors didn’t have an adult section. I got the ball rolling for a senior side when my son Charlie had no team to move up to when he finished with the juniors. We set something up and it snowballed quite quickly.”
Next season, Vale has entered two sides in the Staffordshire County Senior League.
“We’ve exceeded my initial expectations. I just thought it would be a bit of fun,” said Mr Candlin.
“But we’ve fortunately got a coach with Man City’s U15 academy, Nick Lowe, who comes down twice a week and on match days.”
Last season, Vale had up to 19 current or former Vale Juniors players in the squad, including six or seven U16 players.
Added Mr Candlin: “That’s what we pride ourselves on. It’s all local lads and we are trying to use the youth players as much as we can. The furthest anyone comes is from Middlewich – and they’re a former Vale Juniors player who’s moved there.
“The key for us is that we give the lads the best opportunity to play at grassroots level.”
Despite losing the cup final, the club made sure it was a day to remember for the players.
“When they walked into the changing rooms, the kits were all laid out for them and afterwards the Railway pub in Congleton, which sponsors our kits and training tops, put on food for the squad.”
Looking ahead to next season, Mr Candlin said: “We are looking to push on, improve again and go as far as we can in the league.”
Vale’s first pre-season friendly is a local derby against Congleton Town FC Reserves on Saturday, 4th July at Eaton Bank Academy.
