Welcome to #GrassrootsGOATs, our series about the heroes that make football happen at a local level. After your nominations, we have narrowed it down to five people whose incredible dedication has changed the lives of those around them through football. Read the full series here…
Dave Eastham chuckles when thinking about the inaugural training session for Oxenhope Juniors, whose home village nestles amid the moors of Bronte Country in Yorkshire.
“The grass was frozen over, so we had to play on this old Tarmac basketball court,” he says. “There were four kids there and it was also raining. So, not a great start.”
From such inauspicious beginnings in October 2019, the club now boasts six under-age teams and more than 90 players. A feat made all the more remarkable by co-founder Dave — an all-round “superhero” for helping bring “football to the children of this area”, according to friend Andy Farley — grieving the loss of wife Amy from pancreatic cancer during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Amy Firth passed away aged 42 in October 2020, just months after being diagnosed on the eve of the first lockdown in March. She left behind husband Dave and three children, Isla (now 13), Finn (12), and Erin (eight).
“Obviously a really, really difficult time for all the…
