Part of 1. 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:14 pm on 16 May 2017.
I thank the First Minister for that answer. I believe it is really important, for reasons I think all Members here would recognise, First Minister, that we support sport and physical activity at an elite and grass-roots level in Wales. So, I would like to return briefly to Newport County’s success, because I believe it’s very important for both levels. We had a local boy, Michael Flynn, as manager, taking over the team 11 points adrift at the bottom of the table, near the end of the season, and completely turning it around with a dramatic winner in the eighty-ninth minute of the last match of the season to retain professional football for next season in Newport, showing the importance, I think, of local input into team, and of course it is a supporter’s trust.
We will now have Premier League funding for grass roots community and sports activity around football into the future—long into the future, I hope—and at the same time, we’ve seen Newport rugby club shareholders vote for a Welsh Rugby Union takeover, which will keep regional rugby in Newport, and also nurture the game at a local grass-roots level. So, I think professional sport and grass-roots sport are looking strong in Newport at the moment, First Minister, and I wonder if you would join me in paying tribute to all of those people involved in making that a reality, and particularly the grass-roots support.