A community basketball team will celebrate their first birthday next month.

Macc Town Raiders comprises over 90 active players of all skill levels.

Founder Dirk Vervaet (51), who was a professional basketball player until he was 35, has been sharing his skills and expertise with Macclesfield since June 2022.

The 6"1 coach, who used to play basketball at a national level for his native country of Belgium, has lived in our town since 2007.

"It all started with a silly little message on Facebook seeing if anybody would be interested", said Dirk.

"Within a day, I had 15 players and it just kept going from there.

"We are now at a level where we have 90 active members [roughly enough for about seven teams].

"It quickly evolved to a point where the parents were interested in playing."

The ladies team is a relatively new addition. (Image - Macc Town Raiders)

At least 314 people have expressed interest in the club by joining their Facebook group.

There is enough members for the club to have Mixed U12s, Mixed U14s, in addition to adult teams for men and women.

"The difference between grassroots basketball and football is that basketball is more of a family-oriented environment," explained Dirk.

"Football is more competitive, and there's a lot of pressure. We play competitively, but we play for fun.

No coaches take pay, making it an entirely volunteer-powered operation. (Image - Macc Town Raiders)

"The Under 12s played their first match against Stockport a few weeks ago, we lost big time, but they all came off with red cheeks and wide smiles because they enjoyed it so much.

"And if I see that, I can be proud of them.

"Britain has the capacity to become a great basketball nation. The problem is, it is not funded enough. In Belgium for example, every coach gets paid. We're an entirely volunteer-led operation.

"There is a lot Councils can do for the local teams here, put some decent nets out in the parks for example. I've seen the potential Britain has to compete in Europe."

Dirk is originally from the city of Ghent in Belgium, and played professionally for their club. (Image - Alexander Greensmith / Macclesfield Nub News)

As Macc Town Raiders enter their second year, they are seeking to expand not just with more players, but also more sponsors.

Dirk recently thanked the community for donating over £700 to help with their running costs, and you can still donate on this link.

However, to sustain this, the club would love to attract sponsors who want to support grassroots sport.

Volunteers Mark and Sarah Duffield, who are parents of young ballers, are currently dealing with sponsor enquiries via this contact form.

There are some nets at South Park. But an indoor space is preferred as that's where games take place, and it means they can practice all year round. (Image - Supplied with Parental Consent)

"We are desperately in need of court space," said Dirk.

"We are lucky to have have Macc Academy, that is ran through Lifestyle Fitness, who offer their space on Saturday and a Sunday but during the week we have nowhere to practice.

"And if there is a match at the weekend, it means we can only train one day a week. We would like to increase this by having a space during the week.

"Especially as in September, we are entering the north west league for the Under 12s. We'll be going as far as Merseyside. It is getting big now.

A recent crowdfunder helped them to get towards these goals. (Image - JustGiving)

"For sponsors, we will put your name on our website, around the court when we play home games [venue dependent], and possible on the kit."

The club is a real community effort, beyond the mums and dads already helping out.

Their shirts were printed by Macclesfield's Macclesfield's Solutions Workwear and their logo was by Macclesfield tattoo artist Alex Wright.

"Basketball builds a great team spirit and togetherness," added Dirk.

Basketball is a minor sport in the UK. The man have qualified for the Olympics twice, and women once. (Image - Pictured: Nate Reinking of Great Britain defended by Kobe Bryant of the United States CC 2.0 Christopher Johnson Unchanged https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Great_Britain_men%27s_national_basketball_team?uselang=mk#/media/File:Nate_Reinking_defended_by_Kobe_Bryant_USA_vs_GBR_in_Manchester_2012.jpg

"Everyone works for each other. We have had kids who have come in that were very shy at the beginning, but are open and full of laughter now.

"We have kids of all abilities that come, and you can see the change in their character over the months. It is wonderful to see them grow as a team together, and not see them on the street doing nothing.

"It doesn't feel like it has been a year. It has gone by fast. Some people say I have created an unstoppable monster, but I am happy I've created it.

"Thank you everyone for the time and effort put in. The hard work we are putting in will pay off. I want every team by next year to be competing in a north west league, and build it from there.

The club can also offer referee skills, and a reference for your CV, along with the pride of helping youth sport grow. (Image - https://pixabay.com/photos/man-ball-basketball-person-sport-1837119/)

"I love living in Macclesfield as it is a nice little town, surrounded by hills that are beautiful. And also, as I've seen through the club, the people are real friendly here."

The club will grow organically, as the league-ready Under 12s become the Under 14s and so on. So companies could not be joining at a better time.

Once again, If a Macclesfield business wishes to sponsor the club, or if you have any enquiries about joining, why not contact them via the details on this link?

They will celebrate their first birthday with a big party on June 24.

Final image via Indivisible Gaming.