MICK Kearns quite rightly finds himself in the Walsall FC Hall of Fame, but it goes well beyond the 322 senior appearances he made for the club as a reliable last line of defence and the 15 caps that he won for the Republic of Ireland during his time at Fellows Park to make him our most capped player.

He has recently celebrated 20 years as The Saddlers' Community Officer, a role that he still fulfills with the same relish and enthusiasm to this day. "The PFA piloted Community Schemes at various clubs in the north-west back in 1989," he recalled. "They felt that through the power of football, clubs should become more involved within their local communities.

"After the success of the pilot scheme, we were one of the first clubs to set up a Community Programme. I was approached by the Chairman of the time, Barrie Blower and manager, John Barnwell to become the club's first Community Officer.

"It was difficult at first because there was no real model to base our scheme on. I had to use my own thoughts and ideas and it took a few months to really get things off the ground.

"The main aim and objective was to build bridges between the club and local organisations within the town. I initially worked from a tiny, freezing cold office and had just one member of staff, a lad called Tusef Ashraf, but things have expanded so much over the years that I now have a staff of 17 and work within over 30 local schools, seeing tens of thousands of youngsters each year.

"We also have some fantastic facilities such as the Field Turf pitch, the Bescot Bar and, of course The Junior Saddlers Room, which is always a hive of activity on a matchday.

"Our very first project was with a school called Doe Bank in Streetly. This went well and other schools soon became involved. Things took off from there, really.

"The biggest thrill for me is seeing youngsters enjoying the activities that we provide and this in turn stimulating them to become regulars at Walsall matches as they grow up. We see so many youngsters each year and the likes of current first-teamers, Richard Taundry and Peter Till have participated on our Soccer Schools in the past.

"The expansion of our Schools Programme has given me particular satisfaction as we now have eight full-time members of staff, each accompanied by an apprentice, who are in local schools every day of the week. They not only promote football and Walsall FC, but also, working closely with Walsall Primary Care Trust, stress the importance of healthy lifestyles and a good diet.

"This is so important and so many youngsters benefit.

"The next step is for us to continue to diversify into other areas, such as social inclusion and working with partners such as the Walsall Primary Care Trust and the sports development department of Walsall Council.

"If we don't diversify, we will be left behind. We can no longer continue to just coach football to young children; there are so many other aspects that we have a responsibility to be involved in."

59 year-old Kearns, who also fills the role of Goalkeeping Coach and match summariser on Saddlers Player, was quick to praise the role of his staff. "Like any team, every Community Programme is only as good as its staff and I have been very fortunate over the years to have had some excellent staff," he said without hesitation. "I would particularly like to single out my assistant, Adam Davy who is not only a fantastic deputy, but is also a great ambassador for the Community Programme and Walsall FC."

So, what about Kearns' memories of matters on the pitch over the past two decades? "The four promotion seasons have been real highlights," he added. "Particularly when we won at the Millennium Stadium. We all shared a mixture of emotions that day, it was a real roller-coaster ride, but the sense of elation when Darren Byfield scored the winner is something that I will never forget.

"We also had a few good seasons in what is now The Championship. Under Colin Lee we assembled the best squad of players that we have had at Banks's Stadium and the infrastructure of the club also developed greatly.

"All of the managers that I have worked under here have brought something to the table, but Ray Graydon sticks out for his tremendous achievement in taking us up twice and Colin Lee took things on to the next level.

"We are lucky to have an extremely hard-working and focussed managerial team now at the helm in Chris Hutchings and Martin O'Connor. There are some good sides in League One this year, but we should aspire to at least reach the play-offs. We should not settle for mid-table obscurity as we are better than that."

And finally, it came as no surprise to learn that his favourite player during his 20 years at the club is a fellow custodian. "James Walker did fantastically well for this club," he continued. "His consistent form earned us countless points over the years and I would like to think that I played a significant part in his development here.

"He is still held in such high regard by our supporters and deservedly so.

"Coaching goalkeepers still gives me a tremendous amount of pleasure and seeing them develop is something that I care passionately about. It also means that I stay involved on the training ground on a daily basis, which gives me a real buzz."

There are few people who have given such fine service to The Saddlers in so many different roles over the years… Mick Kearns, we salute you!