The Manchester-based club referred to as the ‘country’s worst football team’ has been seeing improvements since their Specsavers sponsorship.
Cavaliers FC failed to win a single match during the first half of the season.
So, earlier this year, Specsavers teamed up with former professional footballer Jimmy Bullard in an attempt to polish up the team’s skills.
In February, when the sponsorship took place, the team were given elite training sessions, new kit, new equipment, and even nutritional plans.
The efforts now appear to be working – the team’s manager and founder, Ben Gage, said: “Four games in since Specsavers got involved, and this calendar year has been off to a much better start.
“We should have gone to Specsavers – thankfully they came to us!”
Now, the team’s members are all being offered full eye tests at their local Specsavers in Wythenshawe in a further bid to improve their chances.
Specsavers decided to offer a lifeline to the club after seeing their appeal for help on Twitter following their devastating 26-0 loss against Avenue FC.
Specsavers said: “A few months ago, we spotted this tweet …”
Head of marketing activation at Specsavers Vicky Clarke said: “We knew when we saw the Cavaliers’ plea on Twitter we had to get involved.
“It’s clear how passionate the manager and the team are about climbing up the league tables and with the help of Jimmy and Specsavers we’re more confident than ever they will.”
In the first four games played since the new year, the team have had one win, one draw, and two defeats – they now share a joint spot at the bottom of the league table.
Mr. Gage said: “We may be joint bottom of the table but we’re technically no longer the worst-performing team in the league.
“In 2022 we’ve already made huge progress against teams such as AFC Burnley. We lost 8-0 to them last time – our last match was a draw where we equalised in the last minute despite playing the entire second half with 10 men.
“There’s no doubt in my mind the technical help from Jimmy and Specsavers, along with the boost to morale and team spirit, has had a huge part to play.”
Specsavers has been documenting the team’s progress on a dedicated YouTube channel called Specsavers’ Best Worst Team, with the help of comedic YouTubers, Statman Dave and Stephen Tries.
Episode five came out just last week, in which the team takes on Bullard in a one-on-one striker challenge. You can find the episode below.
Image: (left to right) player Will Coventry, store manager Victoria Timperley, player Jake Deakin and Cavaliers team manager Ben Gage
