Barry pan disability football team feature in ITV Wales

Barry Town United FC’s pan disability team was formed under the name Vale Reds, before joining with Barry Town a decade ago.

It’s made up of around 25 and 30 members and includes those who are disabled, neurodivergent, visually impaired and deaf or hard of hearing.

The club opened its doors to ITV Cymru Wales earlier this year.

Gareth Axenderrie, co-producer of Welsh Lives, said: “The moment we arrived at Barry Town to start filming, you could see how important the club and the team is to the players.

“There’s been no shortage of good news stories when it comes to Welsh football in recent years, but this programme shows it from a different angle.

“For those involved, the importance of those training sessions and that matchday each week can’t be underestimated.

“It has great characters, everything you can expect from a football club, and a match that is packed full of action and goals. What’s not to love?”

Chloe McBratney was one of the stars of the show (Image: ITV)

Goalkeeper Mark Eveley on the show (Image: ITV)

Mark in action (Image: ITV)

The episode, which went out at 7.30pm on Sunday, November 12, follows the team from training at Jenner Park to a crunch derby match against Cardiff City.

It also includes interviews with key players and coaches along the way. Chloe McBratney, who coaches the team, joined the club during its formative days.

“We cover a wide range of disabilities, which can sometimes be challenging in itself,” she told ITV Cymru Wales’ Welsh Lives programme.

“Within the pan disability setup we have different categories so as coaches we look at a player’s ability [decide which group] suits them more.

“Our team is definitely made up of a lot of characters and that makes a training session really interesting.”

If you missed it you can watch the programme on ITVX.