Former Colchester United Ladies’ director of football Kevin Anderson says he feels “profound sadness” after the club finally lost its battle for survival.
The successful U’s Ladies side, who played their football in the FA Women’s Premier League southern division, have kicked their last ball, with their players now looking for new clubs.
The closure of the Colchester United Community Sports Trust in April left the future of the side, which was founded in 1992, in serious doubt.
The demise of the sports charity, which owned the U’s Ladies team, led to the team losing their affiliation to the Essex Football Association.
Under FA rules, the ownership of the club was severed leaving the U’s Ladies unable to fulfil their outstanding two fixtures at the end of last season and facing a drop of two divisions.
And despite discussions between the Essex FA and the FA to attempt to keep the team going, they have now been forced to admit defeat.
“There’s a feeling of profound sadness and the way in which it has come to an end is really sad,” said Anderson, who was U’s Ladies manager for three seasons and guided them to runners-up spot in the southern division, in 2012.
“We’ve all gone through a very challenging period.
“We tried a lot of different avenues to try and make things work.
“We approached Robbie Cowling and he agreed to help us until the end of last season, so that we could complete the remaining two fixtures but what it came down to was the FA considering it as a change in ownership.
“We tried all kinds of things to try and get the two games played but the FA kept coming back to the affiliation being held by the Trust and when that ceases, the club goes with it.
“I’m very proud of what we achieved - it was a fantastic experience with a lot of high points.
“We’ve also developed talented young female coaches and they’re part of the great legacy that has been left.”
In a statement, an FA spokesperson said: “In accordance with FA regulations, as the legal entity of the club went into liquidation then they ceased to exist and were not affiliated by the Essex FA.
“The club could, in accordance with the regulations, re-form for the following season and enter the Women’s Pyramid of Football two Steps below (the Premier Division of the Eastern Women’s Regional League). “After much consideration the club decided not to go down this route.
“The FA and the Essex FA liaised with the club over many weeks to see if we could find a better solution but were ultimately advised by the FA’s Financial Regulations Team that this was the only course of action.”
Meanwhile, the successful U’s Ladies Centre of Excellence previously run by the Trust will continue, after being taken under the wing of the Essex FA.
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