Natalie Benville: Deal Town FC’s first ever-female Chair

Last September, history was made when Natalie Benville became Deal Town FC’s first-ever female chair. Natalie is a life-long hoops fan and CommunityAd thought what better way to kick off 2021 than to catch up and find out more about her close relationship with the club, thoughts on the current situation with non-league football and future aims she has for Deal Town FC…

 

You have made history by becoming the first-ever female chair of Deal Town FC, how does this feel and how are you enjoying the role so far? 

I have to say what a strange time to be taking over as Chair through this pandemic, however, I’m absolutely loving it, and feel so honoured to be in this position and to be given this opportunity.

 

From the 523 directors in the EFL, just 35 are women, what would you say needs to happen to increase this number and do you think the game is going in the right direction in combating this?

We are in an extremely lucky position at Deal Town FC in that everyone is seen as an equal, we currently have 4 females on our Board, and we actually outweigh the men, it really does help give it a balanced view when we need to make decisions on the day to day running of the club.

The world is changing especially within football when it comes to sexism, discrimination and equality, there will be a time where it doesn’t even need to be a topic of discussion, and I really hope for that day, but there is still a long way to go. Our League has a female Chair as well – Denise Richmond, so I couldn’t ask for a better role model really!

 

The connection you have with Deal Town FC is incredibly heart-warming what with your partner Rob also on the board as Vice-Chairman. How important is it, as a club, to have a family-type bond?  

I think that’s part of the reason I’ve been on the Board for 6 years now at the club because of the family bond and feel that the club has. The fact that we not only have a football club but we also offer facilities to many groups and clubs within the community is brilliant. The NHS being one of them, who have managed to still offer their revives throughout lockdown.

I’ve always loved the club, and remember running round watching my Uncle Roy playing, and now to be given the opportunity to help run and be in charge of the Club is just incredible. Seeing our little girl, Maisie, running round during a match day, shouting ‘Come on Deal’ brings it all back.

You’ll often see me on the gate, taking Track and Trace details or behind the bar, my style might be different to some but I like getting stuck in and to be part of the team. It’s not just down to any one person the running of our club, it’s down to everyone.

 

Having such close relationships with staff and footballers, has it been quite distressing experiencing a chaotic stop-start period of football over the last year? 

Having your partner on the Board (Rob Marriott) can be challenging at times but it also has its benefits. Our Sunday lunchtimes normally turn into a debrief from a Saturday game, even our 4-year-old Maisie gets involved. I was fortunate enough to have had Rob as Chairman previously so have learnt a lot from him. We are extremely lucky to have a fantastic Management team in Derek Hares and Steve King, and the boys that play for us really are a great bunch. We’ve worked hard to get the club to where it is today, and the boys do us proud. We just want to be able to show all our fans what the team can achieve.

Through lockdown, we’ve been doing many quiz nights by Zoom, which has kept us all united as a group, Management team, Board and players. We’ve kept everyone spirits up by keeping in touch, and Kingy has worked hard with the boys even doing 1-1 training sessions for the boys when restrictions have been in place.

I’m hoping by the time this is printed we would have been back playing, and progressing in the League!

 

Non-League Football as a whole is undoubtedly enduring its worst period, do you see a light at the end of the tunnel?

What a time for everyone to be going through, you just couldn’t have predicted it. Before I was elected as Chair, I was looking after everything COVID related for the club, and making sure it was safe for us to allow fans back in. We’ve had to adapt things, and put in place policies to allow us to continue to play and to open our facilities. All of us at the club are volunteers, they really are the lifeline for our club, and thanks to them it’s kept the club ticking over throughout the lockdowns we’ve had.

Throughout this pandemic, everyone’s had to come to a new way of living, and I think it’s become the new normal now for many, even when it comes to football. When lockdown was lifted for the first time, it was heart-warming to see so many families faces back through our gates. Here’s hoping, it won’t be long until we are reunited with our loyal supporters again.

 

From a personal perspective, what are your greatest memories of Deal Town FC?

For me the highlights have to be: the new Clubhouse opening back in, which was a huge highlight from a ground perspective; and getting to travel away to Newcastle for our FA Vase fifth round run last season will always stick with me, a fantastic weekend with the best people. A proud moment for the club, having the FA Vase close to our heart.

 

2021 marks the centenary year for Deal, are there any plans to celebrate this with the community? (Providing guidelines are eased)

We had grand plans for events we would be running, from a Deal Town FC vs Deal Town Legends game, to family days, so let’s hope we can at least still continue some of these plans next year once things ease and are safe to do so. We’ve produced a new kit this season to mark the centenary year, we all think it looks pretty smart.

 

Do you have any aims/missions of where you would like Deal Town to be under your guidance in the next 5-10 years?

My real aims are for the club are to make it sustainable for future generations of the town, and to continue positioning itself within the community, becoming a real asset to the town.

We’ve come a long way but there are things we can still do to achieve this.

I want to be able to give my attention to the Management team and the squad and push them on as far as we can, it’s great to be in the position we are now, and the loyal squad we have, now’s our time to put everything into them and progress. And finally, to make Deal Town FC the club everyone remembers and never forgets. It’s left a mark in my heart and I want that to be the case for everyone that visits us.

 

To keep up to date with Deal Town FC and their wonderful Chair Natalie Benville, follow the team on Facebook, Twitter, or visit their website.