The memory of former Portishead Town player Ollie Hatfield was remembered and celebrated on a special day at Bristol Road on Boxing Day. 

The club's home game against Cribbs Reserves was the backdrop to a series of events to celebrate the life of Hatfield.

Hatfield was just 16 when he broke into the senior set-up at Portishead and worked his way up through the teams to eventually play for the firsts.

He was in the team that won the Somerset FA Senior Cup in 2000 and won promotion to the Western Toolstation League in 2005 and went on to make 323 appearances, scoring 11 goals, in the Toolstation Western League until 2019, a club record.

Hatfield sadly passed away earlier this year at the age of just 39, after a two-year battle with bowel cancer.

Portishead Town director of football James Hughes, a close friend and former teammate of Hatfield, said: "Ollie and his family always have been and still are a huge part of the Portishead Town community, so it was only right that we celebrate him in some way over the festive period - the first without him which was always going to be tough."

During his playing days Hatfield wore the number five shirt, and in the fifth minute of the game the crowd were invited to join in a minutes applause to celebrate the defender's career.
 
Shortly afterwards Portishead opened the scoring through Ethan Feltham against Cribbs and the players ran over to the dugout where a Portishead shirt bearing the number five was shown to the crowd.

At half-time events moved over to the clubhouse for a presentation and unveiling of a commemorative bench. Hatfield's wife, Emma, and children Lily, Teddy and Elsie were presented with gifts from the club, including replica Hatfield shirts for the kids.

Throughout the day donations were collected for Bowel Cancer UK with £250 raised for the charity.

Despite falling to a 4-3 defeat, Portishead's first defeat in 22 league games, Feltham scored two more goals to complete his seventh hat-trick of the season and take his total to 38 goals from 22 games, Hughes said the day was all about coming together to celebrate the memory of Hatfield.

He added "Whilst the result wasn't what we were hoping for, it was a great day of memories made and the players and club as a whole all pulled together to make it happen which is what we are all about at Portishead Town."