BY Adam Gillham & Charlie Sewell

WORLD Cup legend Sir Geoff Hurst has presented a youth football league with the FA charter standard award, the first league in London to achieve the status.

The south east London & Kent (Selkent) youth league has been presented with the award for its work with young children in the area.

With 82 clubs and 432 teams across the boroughs of Bexley, Greenwich, Lewisham, Southwark, Bromley, Dartford and Gravesham , the league is one of the largest in the capital.

And it has made history by becoming the first in London to be awarded the Football Association's charter standard.

The award means it meets the strict criteria set out by the organisation into the running of childrens' grassroots football.

Sir Geoff Hurst, who won the World Cup with England in 1966, is the director of football for McDonalds who sponsor the FA Charter Standard award. Officials from the Selkent league were presented with the award at the London Marathon Ground in Shooters Hill.

Secretary of the Selkent league Sally Dolan said: “It is an absolute honour to receive the FA charter standard from Sir Geoff Hurst.

“We are delighted to have been awarded the FA charter standard.

“It shows our league is run in the right way.”

Dolan worked closely with David James, senior officer for the London FA, on the three-year football development plan to achieve the award.

Clubs within the league have been working with Daniel Gayle, London FA’s club welfare officer, to help them achieve their FA charter standard awards too.

League chairman Ken Pickerell added: “Next season will be our 10th anniversary and we are gone from strength to strength each year.

“There are currently 82 clubs with a total of 432 youth teams aged seven to 17 in the Selkent League and the standard of football in our league is very high.

“Our member clubs work very hard for their young players and members and the FA charter standard award is a reflection of that just as much as it is about the league.”

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