Does your team’s voluntary manager know how to motivate a squad and get results, whether that’s pushing them up the league table or getting the best out of their players? Nominations for the ‘Manager’ category of the #CelebrateEssex competition are required through the @EssexCountyFA Twitter account by Wednesday 15th August.

#CelebrateEssex, organised via our Twitter account, aims to promote inspirational personal examples and stories, encouraging new faces to get involved and grow the grassroots community. Once nominations close, a select group will be chosen for a Twitter poll to identify the monthly winner, who’ll receive a prize and extra public plaudits.

August is the month of the ‘Manager’ category. All teams require a manager to organise the team for fixtures, lead them on matchdays and organise training. In a lot of cases this will also include coaching the team as well, to develop their ability.

Nominations for each month’s #CelebrateEssex category winner are collected, analysed and whittled down into candidates for a Twitter online poll/vote. This lasts for seven days, after which a winner is named and celebrated. A #CelebrateEssex web page will feature the details of the project, a schedule of forthcoming votes and a listing of previous winners.

So far Frinton & Walton Youth’s Lisa Ursell has been named as the ‘Footie Mum’ winner, five-year-old Grays Athletic fan Millie has claimed the ‘Supporter’ triumph and Concord Rangers’ Jack Smith won the ‘Treasurer’ category in May. In June, Jason Plunkett was recognised as Essex’s best ‘Footie Dad’ and Keith Di Palma from Tigers JFC was the winning ‘Chairperson’ in July.

The competition has proved to be popular so far, and future months will also eventually feature: September: Secretary, October: Welfare Officer, November: Young Volunteer, December: Fundraiser, January: Groundsperson, February: Coach.

Stage One: Make Your Nomination on Twitter

If you know a Manager who you think should receive some special thanks, anyone can make a nomination by tweeting (by 15th August):

“I nominate [Insert Name/Handle] as @EssexCountyFA #CelebrateEssex Manager because…”

State why your nominee should be the winner and be as descriptive as you can in 280 characters! It’s important to use the #CelebrateEssex hashtag to ensure your entry is registered.

Stage Two: Nominations Reviewed

Once the window closes, all the nominations received will be collated and a panel will decide which individuals will be progressed to the Twitter poll/vote...

Stage Three: Let Voting Commence!

A Twitter poll/vote will be available at @EssexCountyFA for seven days, featuring profiles of the nominees so voters can make an informed decision on who to vote for.

Stage Four: And Our Winner Is…

The winner of the poll will be contacted to be that month’s ‘Volunteer of the Month’, who’ll receive a prize plus promotional activities to celebrate their work.

Follow the #CelebrateEssex hashtag on Twitter to keep track of the competition! To find out more about volunteering in grassroots Essex football, browse the 'Volunteers' menu above, follow @EssexCountyFA on Twitter and search for ‘EssexFootball’ on Facebook.