The 2018 Oldham Sports Awards - a celebration not to be missed!

Scroll down for Video

With just two weeks to go until the glitzy presentation evening at the Queen Elizabeth Hall, Oldhamers are now being urged not to miss out on their chance to celebrate with their local sporting heroes at the 2018 Oldham Sports Awards.

The great and the good of the borough's sporting fraternity will converge at the QE Hall on Friday, September 21.

This year marks the 16th annual award ceremony.

The event allows people from different sporting backgrounds to unite as a community and appreciate each other's efforts in order to help improve the local area, while also congratulating and celebrating the accomplishments of the borough's biggest sporting heroes.

Winners from the Sport's Awards - there are eight categories - will go on to represent the borough at the Greater Manchester Sports Awards later in the year.

The award categories this year are Unsung Hero, Club of the Year, Coach of the Year, Volunteer of the Year, Disabled Sports Achiever of the Year, Contribution to School Sport Award, Sports Achiever of the Year and the Changing Lifestyle Award.

Today the Chronicle features the third of our eight looks at the award nominees with a focus on the Coach of the Year award.

Three people have been nominated:

Lee Hadfield

Lee has shown huge dedication to Chaddy Park Sports Club, coaching five teams including the under-12s, under-18s and under-6s.

He also coaches a team of players with cerebral palsy.

Lee takes the group to train at Manchester City every week and to the Manchester Ability League once a month, as well as to play other teams of players with cerebral palsy in Newtown, Stoke and Bolton.

His dedication has transformed the under-12s team into a force to be reckoned with, winning the majority of their games along with the under-18s who have won back-to-back league titles.

One of his players with cerebral palsy was recently selected to play for Manchester City in an international game.

Lee coaches around 200 children on a regular basis and last year was awarded the Jack Halliwell Trophy in recognition of his voluntary services.

Nicola Patrick

In March 2013, Nicola formed Chadderton Park Netball Club with the aim of creating opportunities for children without the elite experience needed for other clubs.

Since then, the club has gained 110 girls across 13 teams ranging from years three to 12.

Players under Nicola's wing have gone on to play at elite level in Oldham and Manchester Thunder Youth Team, and the club's teams have won the prestigious Bury Premier League.

She has an active focus on player development, encouraging older players to become level 1 coaches, of which she now has six and three waiting for a course.

The club remains as inclusive as it was intended to be, holding no trials and inviting everyone with a passion for the sport to fulfil their potential.

Thomas Mooney

At Stubby's Gym, Thomas is the coach getting the best out of each boxer.

Every day is spent designing tailored training sessions for the evening, the quality of which all the fighters note.

On the two days he is not coaching in the gym, Thomas takes the boxers on his own training sessions, voluntarily sacrificing large amounts of his free time for the children.

His approach has been successful in increasing the young people's stamina, strength and fitness on a daily basis.

On Monday, we'll take a look at the Volunteer of the Year award nominees.

September 21 will present a great evening to recognise local people for their contribution to sport and activity.

Call 0161 770 4051 to book your tickets, which cost just £15 each.

In the meantime, check out local updates on Twitter using the hashtags #TeamOldham and #OSA2018