IT comes as no surprise when a teacher says the kids are the future. But for one Nelson teacher, his nurturing tendencies extend way beyond the classroom.

Alan Pickering, who does the job of chairman at Nelson - without the title - is building up the junior sides at the club in the hope to make it a non-League force.

Just under 12 months ago the 49-year-old father-of-four, along with two others, took over the running of the club after the former chairman Albert Barnes, and most of the old board, stepped down.

Along with Stuart Smith and Linda Treitle, PE teacher Pickering has tried to breathe new life into the club.

"I suppose I do the job of chairman but I am not the chairman. It is just a title we haven't decided who will have.

"We looked at it when we came in and said we needed to go grass roots, get the kids involved which in turn gets the parents involved," said Pickering, a former Nelson player, who taught the current manager John Bailey at Primet High School in Colne many years ago.

"When the parents get involved maybe sponsorship from their businesses will follow too."

So the club amalgamated with junior side Pendle Forest and will soon have more than a dozen sides of all ages, from Under Eights to Under 19s, two amateur sides, a reserve side and the semi-professional team, that plays in the North West Counties League second division.

"We had the kids down for the Colne game last week just to show them that this is a good standard of football for them to play if they don't make it," said Pickering, whose enthusiasm for Nelson and the task ahead seems to know no bounds.

He isn't happy to let Nelson sit in the NWCL second division for the next 20 years.

"I want to see how far we can go. Of course in the back of my mind is a desire to get into the Football League but of course that would be impossible with the ground where it is.

"But we can get the best team possible and see how far we get.

"I am full of admiration for Chalky (Graham White) and what he did with Colne Dynamoes.

"I know he did it with money but still.

"My aim is for us to get into the first division and then the UniBond, it is a five year plan.

"The ground is good enough for the first, and only a bit of work needs doing for the UniBond.

"The facilities need improving because they have just been left for a long time. We need better training facilities, an astroturf.

"But it is hard to get the finances and it is hard to get people on board.

"The local businesses are not owned by people in Nelson so they are often not interested and the kids have lots of things to do with their leisure time other than come down to Nelson.

"But the club can open up opportunities for people, especially young people, and I just say 'let's work toward the same objective'.

"As an amateur sportsman I always wanted to do as well as I could do but for a long time I didn't think there was anyone pushing and encouraging kids with talent."

Now teaching at Gawthorpe High School, Pickering is known as 'Sir' to many non-League footballers in the area.

"I have taught a lot of the footballers round here," he said.

"I have seen virtually every young player in the area since 1972, including the likes of Micky Phelan.

"A lot of the them do call me 'Sir' but I just tell them to give over.

"It's nice. They are all my friends, they are friends as soon as they leave school.

"I even taught John (Bailey) when he was 11. He was a marvellous player.

"Unfortunately he arrived in August 1977 and I left in the October but when I first saw him I thought 'What have I got here?'.

"He was tremendous. He could pass a ball. He could take a free kick and land the ball in the opposition penalty area.

"He was playing for the school team against the teachers when he was 11. They didn't win though, the experience told!

"He is someone I have a lot of time for and I'll do everything I can to help him.

"And he needs some help because he is only young.

"We have someone in the pipeline, a former Premier League coach and we'd be delighted if he came.

"He would be first team coach but also a club coach for the kids."

Pickering says the club had a setback last summer when star striker Kiko Rodriguez left to become manager of West Lancs League side Burnley United, taking a number of other players with him.

It followed the promotion that never was last summer.

Nelson thought they had been promoted when Atherton lost their final game of the season.

But Atherton appealed for the game to be replayed because the opposition side had fielded an ineligible player.

They won the replay and were promoted in Nelson's place.

This season the side have struggled to make the same impact and won't be promoted.

"The team at the moment are doing very well but we had a problem last year when half the team left. They wanted to play in the first division.

"But it left John (Bailey) under a lot of pressure and he takes a lot on his shoulders but as long as I'm here he will be.

"We want to make this club the centre of football round here."