Dial M for Merthyr: Why Line of Duty star Vicky McClure is sponsoring a football team
Line of Duty star Vicky McClure along with her fiance, director and broadcaster Jonny Owen, are about to sponsor a football team, REPORTS RYAN HERMAN…
To celebrate the launch of their new production company, BYO Films, and because Jonny Owen was born and bred in Merthyr, the couple announced this week they would be sponsoring the Southern Premier League team - the BYO Films logo will appear on Merthyr Town’s shorts from next season. But not only does the deal support grass roots football and bring publicity for the production company, the news has also prompted other potential sponsors to come forward at a time when so many non-league clubs like Merthyr (nickname The Martyrs) are just about managing to keep their heads above water.
“It's so important for clubs like Merthyr that they get a bit of help," Owen told BBC Radio. In fact, they haven’t hosted a game since September 2020, when it decided that the only course of action was to ‘mothball’ the club so it wouldn’t go bankrupt. With no crowds allowed inside the ground, Merthyr Town, which owned by the fans, would have run out of money within a couple of months.
McClure and Owen added that, “We are delighted to have the name of our new production company on the Merthyr players' shorts.
“We both love the town and are passionate supporters of grassroots football. We wish the manager and the team every success this season and look forward to coming down when we can to cheer on the Martyrs”.
It’s been a busy week for Merthyr, as they also re-signed forward Ian Traylor and became (unofficially) the greenest football club in Wales. In partnership with Egni Co-op, 30kW of solar panels were installed at the MetCoaches Community stadium.
Engi spokesman Alex Ferraro said “We hope other sporting venues will join us to tackle climate change. We have approached Wrexham Football Club owned by Hollywood stars, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney to follow Merthyr’s lead!”