Red has taken football legends back to their roots to kick off the FA Community Awards, presented by McDonald's.

1966 World Cup hero and McDonald’s Director of Football, Sir Geoff Hurst visited the street where he grew up in Chelmsford, his first grassroots club and finally West Ham's Upton Park.  John Barnes made a return to Liverpool twenty four years after his debut for the Reds against Arsenal and Trevor Francis rolled the clock back 40 years when he returned to his roots in Devon to visit a local grassroots football club.

The footballers all re-lived their grassroots journeys and celebrated their own community football heroes as nominations opened for the 2011 Community Awards.

The FA Community Awards aim to recognise and reward people across the country who make a difference to grassroots football in their local community – from coaches and clubs, through to leagues and volunteers – the people who dedicate their time to developing tomorrow’s young talent and help ensure safety and best practice in tens of thousands of clubs up and down the country.

Speaking at Chelmsford City Youth FC, Sir Geoff Hurst was clear about the vital importance of the grassroots:

"We can’t underestimate the importance of the grassroots game and the impact it has on football fans across the country, young and old. Everyone who ever made it in football started out playing somewhere, be it on the streets, in a park or at school. Thousands of people across the country dedicate their time and energy every week to providing a quality grassroots experience at clubs across the country and the FA Community Awards give us the chance to thank those individuals for their dedication and commitment to improving the quality of football in the local community.”