After graduating recently from Banbury United's Youth Section into the senior Club, our Under-17 team will join the Midland Junior Premier League (MJPL) for the forthcoming 2023/24 season. As the league is a competition for Under-18s, the team – which has also been registered for the FA Youth Cup – will become Banbury United’s actual Under-18 squad during season 2024/25.

MJPL matches are played on Saturday mornings. The team will play selected home matches at the Banbury Plant Hire Community Stadium. All of the team’s fixtures and news will be published on Banbury United’s website.

The team is jointly managed by Ben Hayes and Carl Ashford: “Carl and I have enjoyed putting together a strong pool of local talent, starting at Under-14s, with some excellent results over the last three seasons,” explained Ben. “So, we are excited to take the group forward over the next two seasons at Under-18 level.”

Added Carl: “The squad is very excited about the potential for training alongside the Vanarama National League North first team, playing matches at the stadium, and helping to begin to build the pathway from youth football to men's football for the Club as it moves forward.”

Banbury United’s Club Chairman Ronnie Johnson echoed this sentiment: “This is an exciting period of time for our Club, and everybody involved. The senior Club is putting a structure in place to aid youth development in support of our first team. With an Under-18 side now affiliated to the main Club, we're aiming to progress that to a position where we have a development side in two seasons’ time. Beginning this initiative now, the objective is to encourage – and keep replenishing – local young talent; offering a platform to showcase their skills, and to be part of an aspirational pathway that, for some, could provide the ultimate opportunity to play for our first team.”

A package of sponsorship opportunities for the Under-18s team will be available, and announced shortly.