Bartram’s family decided a football game in honour of him was a good way to keep his memory alive and celebrate the fun life he lived.

The family set up a trust to assist and educate others.

Sister, Holly Bartram, said there were three memorial trophies up for grabs on Saturday honouring youth who had lost their lives too soon.

“We’ve got the Mitchell Bartram Man of the Match, the Tom Rhode Encouragement Award and the Aaron O’Neile Best Score of the Day. These awards are special to the families of these boys who were all great friends,” she said.

All who play on Saturday will be eligible to win the awards, which will be judged by referee Kevin Rigby.

“We would like to see everyone show up with their boots ready to play. The day is free unless you want to buy a jersey and that will cost $50. It’s a fun event and the more we get the better it’ll be,” she said.

Already, the family have been told people will travel from different parts of NSW, including a couple of “friends of friends” from Dungowan.

“Last year we had people travel from Brisbane and Townsville to play so hopefully everyone gets involved and joins in on the family friendly, fun day,” she said.

Bartram said girls were more than welcome to play as well.

“We’ve also got a DJ for the presentation, a barbecue, raffles, face painting and a jumping castle for the kids. This year we’ve been extremely busy so we’re hoping to make next year’s game a big one,” she said.

The Mitchell Bartram Trust will focus, next year, on anti-bullying and victims of crime.

“Obviously victims of crime is very close to home for us and I believe the subject is not recognised enough in general, so we’re looking to do a few things with schools and the community,” she said.

The trust will also look at encouraging a professional football player to attend the game next year to sign some jerseys and bring more people to Pallamallawa.

“We’ll also look at making the day a round robin style competition so we can have a few more games happening throughout the day,” she said.

This year the game will be held at the Pallamallawa oval and the presentation, barbecue and raffles will be held at the Pallamallawa recreation grounds.