BURTON Albion volunteer Enid Barks was given the honour of presenting the Bass Charity Vase to the Brewers in recognition of her service to the club
Albion won the Vase on penalties after the game ended 0-0 after 90 minutes.
Enid and her brothers Cliff and Barrie have been real stalwart volunteers at the club.
Enid started supporting the club in 1953 at Wellington Street. In 1960 at Eton Park, she started volunteering despite being pregnant with her first child. She used to stand behind the goal near the Tote Office and Vera Goode asked if she would help checking tickets. When the Tote closed down, she started running one of the tea bars. She did that for seven years. Then Chairman Ben Robinson asked her if she would help do teas in the boardroom and she has carried on doing it for the last 45 years. In 2015 Enid was named in the Football League’s 72 Club Heroes.
Cliff Wilson supported the club from the first season in 1950/51 and from 1978 began helping our groundsmen, from Tom Eccleshall at Eton Park to Simon Marshall at the Pirelli Stadium. He only stopped when he had to have a new hip but soon after the op was back helping to sweep up.
Barrie Wilson was also a fan from the beginning and started helping the club as a volunteer at Eton Park. He did all the club’s painting and decorating at Eton Park.
Enid said: "It was wonderful to be able to present the Vase as I'm retiring now.
"I have been coming for 67 years. The club is a lot different from when I started at Wellington Street. I never thought we would have a place like this in my lifetime.
"I would love to carry on but your body tells you when it's time to pack in. But I will still come down and support them, I can't stop that."
The Bass Vase was last contested in 2019 when Derby County were the winners. Last year there was no game due to the pandemic.
Dave Mellor President of the Bass Vase said: “It was fantastic that after all the disruption that has been caused to football by the Covid-19 pandemic that we were once again be able to see two teams with strong associations with the Bass Vase competing for it again this summer.
“I want to thank Burton Albion and Leicester City for agreeing to play for the Bass Vase and Ben Robinson for his continued support of this charity which has such a strong heritage in the town and which the Brewers have played such a strong part in keeping alive.
“It was a very entertaining game played in a great spirit and it seemed fitting that it saw the return of fans to the Pirelli Stadium to witness it.”
A donation from the proceeds of the game will go to the bass Charity Vase to distribute to local good causes.