Huddersfield Town Women have a new chairman after the resignation of former chief Alison Bamforth.
Bamforth stepped down at the end of the season after two years and former chairman David Mallin has agreed to take on the role again for 12 months until a new chairman is found.
Mallin, 62, has been involved in women’s football for more than 20 years and first became chairman in 2009. He continued through to June 2021 when he handed over the reins to Bamforth.
On being re-appointed chairman Mallin said: “In agreement with the committee it has been decided I will step back into the position of chairman for the next 12 months to give the committee time to find someone new.
“Obviously this isn’t something I had planned but with Alison’s departure I felt I needed to come back and help the club from the top. This isn’t a long-term solution and I’m just stepping back in to steady the ship.
Alison Bamforth has stepped down as chairman.
“Last season was difficult. It is getting harder and harder to compete at this level. We had a number of players move on to clubs with bigger budgets and the ability to pay players.
“To give an example, Wolves and Burnley – both in our league last year – had a budget of £200,000 for players, whereas we have a budget of £50,000 to run the entire club for a whole year!
“If you look at the division above you need an average of £500,000 just to start with and most clubs are generating £1 million plus now at the higher levels.
“In Super League terms it’s more like £5 million at the top clubs. So the numbers are really stacked against us without any financial backing.
“We paid the players a little something out of the money we got from our FA Cup run but without that cup run there was nothing. We all work very hard as volunteers and we keep trying to make the club a success but it is difficult.”
Town play in the National League Northern Premier Division which is level three in the football pyramid. Last campaign they finished sixth having collected 26 points from 22 games.
More clubs are combining the women’s side with the men’s team, however this has yet to happen at the Terriers.
Whilst Town have in the past supplied the women’s team with items such as kit and currently let the first team and junior sections of the club train at the Millers Oils High Performance Complex, there is still no official partnership.
This is something that Mallin and head coach Glen Preston would like to address with Town’s new owner Kevin Nagle.
Mallin revealed: “We have a meeting booked in to see various staff at Town and will be making a presentation to explain why we really need to be partnering with the men’s club now. To be successful in the women’s game you need to be partnered with the men’s.
“While it’d be nice if we had a bit more money, one of the main things we’d like to use is the gym at the training ground and to be able to play our matches there.
“Those teams with bigger budgets have access to quality facilities and so to continue to compete, this is something we want to speak with Town about.”
Mallin confirmed that Preston (above) and his staff would be staying at the club for next season and recruitment was underway.
“Glen has lots of knowledge and works ever so hard,” said Mallin. “We will certainly be trying to improve our league form next year. We are already talking to players to see if they will sign for us and so everything is good on that front.”
Mallin has also appealed for more volunteers to help run the club and said: “With me stepping back up to the chairman position we are in need of a secretary and also a few other roles around the club.
“If you are interested in getting involved in a football club and want to volunteer for us in some capacity then please don’t hesitate to get in touch.”
