Don Paget

Don was the owner of a large market garden business in Bromham and he was President of Bromham Football Club for whom his four sons all played, three of whom also played for the Wiltshire County representative team. He was elected to the Wiltshire FA Council in 1964 and after serving the Council for 20 years he became Vice President of the Association. Don had been a Vice President of the old Wiltshire Football League and had supported the Wiltshire County League from the initial stages and if it was not for his generosity, the league may not have got off the ground. An interest free loan by Don enabled the league to operate in the first few seasons, after a request to the Wiltshire FA for financial assistance had been turned down. Don was elected as the first President of the Wiltshire County Football League in 1976 and always a great supporter of football in Wiltshire, he remained President from that very first season until his passing in 2000.

Dick Nunn

Dick came to Chippenham during the Second World War where he met and married his wife Margaret and remained in Chippenham after the war. He played for Chippenham Town in his younger days and was a big supporter of local football. He was elected to the Wiltshire FA as a Council Member in 1965 representing the Chippenham (North West Wilts) parliamentary division. Dick was elected as the first Chairman of the Wiltshire County League in 1976 and continued to serve as chairman of the league until his death in September 1990.

Les Miles

Les came to Wiltshire whilst serving as an officer in the Army and settled in Trowbridge. Les not only played football in the county but was also a referee and later also served as Club Secretary of Trowbridge Town for a time. He was elected to the Wiltshire FA in 1964. He was elected Vice Chairman of the newly formed Wiltshire County League in 1976 and remained as Vice Chairman until his death in 1983.

Sid Ashman

Sid was a past player with Oxford City, Trowbridge Town and Swindon Victoria. He joined the management committee of the old Wiltshire Football League in the early 1960’s, serving as Chairman of the league before taking over from E.C. Mills as the Honorary Secretary and Treasurer in Season 1968-69. He remained secretary of the old Wiltshire League until the formation of the new Wiltshire County League in 1976, upon which he was elected as the Secretary of the new league. He remained as Secretary until 1981 when he stood down but remained as a valuable member of the management committee and later became a Life Member of the league. He sadly passed away in June 1992 after a short illness.

George Highmore

In his younger days George had played for Frogwell and in 1965 he took over as their Club Secretary. At the time Frogwell were an established member of the old Wiltshire Football League. When the new Wiltshire County Football League was established in 1976 George was a member of the initial Management Committee of the league. The following season he was elected to the position of Honorary Treasurer of the league, a position he held until his death in 1984.

Peter Ackrill

Peter took up refereeing at an early age in 1957, gaining promotion to Class 1. He started on the North Berks League but quickly progressed to the Hellenic League referee list in 1958. He continued to climb the refereeing ladder and joined the Southern league line list in 1963 and then to the Southern League referees list in 1967. The following year he progressed to the Football League list where he remained until 1979. During his time on the Football League Peter ran the line on games in Division One (the equivalent of the Premier League today) and a programme from the QPR v Coventry City Division One game from 10th November 1973 featuring Peter on the line is shown below. He also progressed to European competitions, and the highlight of his refereeing career was when he was appointed as one of the officials for the Malmo v Dynamo Kiev European Cup tie in 1978, the season that Malmo reached the final, losing to Nottingham Forest. He finally retired as a referee in 1988 having officiated at over 2,000 matches in a career spanning more than 30 years. As well as his refereeing Peter had become the Honorary Registration Secretary of the Swindon Sunday League in 1966, a position he held for 10 years and in 1969 he took on the job of Honorary Secretary of the Wiltshire & Berkshire Six-a-side Tournament Organising Committee, a position he held for 12 years. In 1970 he commenced a six-year period as the Referees Appointment Secretary of the Allied Counties Cup Competition. When the Wiltshire County League was established in 1976 he became the Honorary Registration Secretary, a position he held for five years before being promoted to the league’s Honorary General Secretary in 1981 when Sid Ashman stepped down, a position Peter was to hold until stepping down in 2003. Peter remained involved in the league, becoming the League President, but sadly passed away the following year.

Cliff Cousins

Cliff had served on the management committee of the old Wiltshire Football League and he was elected to the Wiltshire FA in 1973, eventually becoming a Vice President of the County Association. He was a member of Marlborough Town Football Club, acting as Club Chairman for a number of years. He was elected as a member of the management committee of the newly formed Wiltshire County League for the inaugural 1976-77 Season and did much sterling work over the years in respect of the league rules. He came Vice Chairman in 1991 when Dennis Kilford was elevated to the position of Chairman. He sadly passed away in August 1995.

John Northover

At a very young age in the 1960's John had been Secretary of Chippenham Town Football Club and, for a very short time, Chairman of the club during challenging times. In 1983, he became Chippenham’s President. The following year he joined both the Wiltshire County Football Association and the Wiltshire County League, serving as Treasurer to both administrations. John was to remain Treasurer of the Wiltshire League for a period of 28 years during which time he took the League’s assets from just over £1,000 when he first took over to a healthy £45,160 when he finally retired in 2012. He retained an interest in league matters as a Life Member of the League. His service with the Wiltshire FA as Treasurer until 2004, saw John made an Honorary Member of the Wiltshire County Football Association. John was also very much a member of the Chippenham Town Bowls Club and the North Wiltshire Indoor Bowls Club and became President of the Wiltshire County Bowls Association in 1999. John sadly passed away in October 2020 after a short illness.

Phil Cook

After Phil finished playing, he took up refereeing in 1969 and first appeared in the list of match officials in the handbook for the old Wiltshire Football League, the predecessor to the Wiltshire Senior League, in Season 1972-73. Phil was to reach Class 2 with his refereeing, which is equivalent to the current County League standard of Level 5.

Phil's football administration duties started when he joined the Wiltshire County League as Assistant League Secretary in 1977, the year after the league was formed. The following season, he was elected to the newly created position of League Fixtures Secretary, a position which he held up until his sad passing some 45 years later, making him the longest standing officer in the League's history by some distance. In 2008 the position of Results Secretary was also added to Phil's portfolio of league responsibilities.

Phil was a dedicated, much liked and highly respected individual who provided immense service to football in Wiltshire which was recognised by the Wiltshire FA when they made him an Honorary Member of the Wiltshire Football Association. Phil sadly passed away in November 2022 after a short illness.