The award winners were VIP guests at The FA Community Shield  yesterday and were presented with their awards at half-time by Sir Trevor Brooking, FA Head of Football Development and Sir Geoff Hurst, 1966 world cup winner and McDonald’s Director of Football.

Jacqui Moore’s 10-year involvement with Harrow St Mary’s has enabled her to watch the progress of her three football-mad sons - Jay, 17, Ashlee, 14, and Rory, nine – who all play for the club.

Her various roles include press officer, tuck shop organiser, results secretary, website co-ordinator, accounts administrator and cleaner.

17-year-old Jamie Cairns stepped in when a handful of 10-year-olds came regularly to training at Rutherford AFC – even though there weren’t enough of them to form a team and no manager to run them.

He took them on, coached them twice a week, built up the squad, found sponsors for strips and tracksuits and entered them in the Russell Foster League . Jamie has enlisted parents to help with transport  and  keeps them up-to-date with regular newsletters and washes the strips each week.

Also honoured  were Avishaves Combe YFC’s Geoff Facey and Princes Villa FC’s Karl Jones, both of whom have been instrumental in their clubs achieving Charter Standard Status, and John Raftery, the hard-working manager, secretary and fixtures secretary of Keymer & Hassocks FC.

The tireless work of David Richardson, the Acting County Secretary of Devon FA, has also been acknowledged, along with Sandy Hills, the secretary of James & James Football Club.

Two other juniors also received  the national award. They are Cottingham Rangers’ Jon Robinson, a young player who is putting his coaching and refereeing qualifications to excellent use, and Mulbarton Wanderers and Belles FC’s Alexandra Minns. 

Congratulating the award winners, FA Chairman Geoff Thompson said: “The game of football in this country is only possible because of all those people who give their time freely and voluntarily to keep the game going. 

“Volunteers are the backbone of the game and deserve every accolade that we can possibly give. Without them we wouldn’t have football. 

“And we need to encourage more. People can get satisfaction by giving their time to something they enjoy.

“All I can say from my position is to each and every volunteer ‘grateful thanks’ and don’t think you’re the forgotten army, because you’re not.”

The FA’s annual Volunteer Workforce Awards are designed to acknowledge the game’s army of unsung heroes who work tirelessly behind the scenes to develop football at all levels.

The current awards have special significance as Chancellor Gordon Brown has designated 2005 the Year of the Volunteer - a year-long celebration of the amazing work volunteers do and a call to action to encourage more people to act as volunteers.