Rejects FC has been set up for children with special needs and disabilities. (SWNS)

Two parents have set up Rejects FC for children with special needs and disabilities who have been turned away from other football clubs and school teams.

Jay Dooley and his wife Tracy decided to take matters into their own hands after their son, Harrison, was upset over not being picked for his school side.

The 10-year-old was born with a hole in his heart and a blood disorder, meaning that he is fatigued quicker than other children as he produces fewer red blood cells.

In August, Jay took Harrison and four of his friends, who also didn’t make the team, to play football in their local park in Bestwood, Nottingham.




But a friendly kick-around has now turned into a weekly event as the numbers have grown to a 20-strong squad of youngsters with heart problems, cerebral palsy and autism.

‘It started when Harrison came home upset he hadn’t made the school team,’ explained the father-of-two, who also has a seven-year-old daughter Lena.

Lena Dooley and Harrison Dooley are coached by their father Jay at their local park. (SWNS)

‘I told him I would take him to the field for a kick about with some mates and the numbers just kept growing so we decided to make it a proper team.

‘People saw Rejects as a negative name but if you look in the dictionary it means not to give in and that’s why we went with that name.

‘They love being part of something that they can’t be part of in normal, everyday life.

‘If you took my lad to a normal team they would never take him on because of his blood disorder.

‘A lot of the kids playing did not make the school team and I know personally how important it is to be part of something.’

According to Jay’s wife Tracy, the decision to name the team Rejects FC came from her son Harrison and his friend Joshua.

‘They felt that Rejects FC was a perfect name,’ she said.

‘This did not mean that they were a child that nobody wanted, it reflected their ability to defy those who had rejected them and show that they were capable to do whatever they wanted to do.

Harrison Dooley picked the name Rejects FC along with his friend. (SWNS)

‘We did get comments about the name of the team but found this was from adults who had children with average ability and not from the parents that had children with less ability.

‘Soon parents were making donations to buy portable goals and balls.

‘To date we have a wide range of kids that have different levels of ability. Some have ADHD, ADD, cerebral palsy, dyslexia and autism.’

Emma McCrea, 37, from Top Valley, Nottingham, is one parent who has seen the benefits of Rejects FC.

Her 11-year-old son, Jay, suffers with cerebral palsy and epilepsy and goes to training after he wasn’t selected at school.

‘He gets ignored and has been left out of football at school,’ she said.



‘This allows him to spend quality time with his friends that are on the same level.

‘If he was not doing this he would be at home on his Xbox. It has really built his confidence.’

Leigh-Anne Hudson from Bestwood also takes her 11-year-old son Joshua, who has ADHD and autism.

‘He does not get to go out and play and this is his socialising out of school,’ she said

‘He loves it. He is one of the first here each week and he has stuck with it.’

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