Is your team back?

[Boletus Edulis]

Today was our first day of pre-season. The club said they wanted to wait until they knew when the first matches were due. The argument being that they had a set number of weeks they wanted to get the team ready - start too soon and they get stale, start too late and not match fit enough.

We believe that there will be friendlies’, but all likely to be played at Home Park because of social distancing.

We are being told that expectation is that grounds, once crowds are allowed, will be at around 30 per cent capacity, with our normal capacity of around 18k. So crowds of around 5 k. We had in the region of 6-6.5k season ticket holders last year. Season tickets on sale today, with no new season ticket holders possible -only those with season tickets last year. Club does not expect to sell other tickets than season tickets. The prices are the same as last year.

It is possible that there will be more season ticket holders than seats for games. What is causing some chaos is that the club will decide on who gets allocated for each game is the order by which season tickets were bought - first come first served. So we got ours within the first hour, so we call pull the ladder up we’ll alright jack. But others will be much less lucky. So there is a mass attempt to log on line or phone to get season tickets. If a season ticket holder is not allocated a ticket to a match the club hope they will be allocated ifollow, but this depends on agreement from EFL.


How are things at your club?

 

[Luke Imp]

Not sure on us, I'm guessing we're back next Monday.

We had 6.5k season ticket holders last season, 4k+ had already renewed for this season before Covid and capacity will probably be capped at 3.5k for us so that obviously isn't ideal. We averaged 90%+ capacity last season so we're probably going to be one of, if not the, most hampered Clubs in L1 until everyone is allowed back in.

Not sure what the Club are going to do with putting season tickets back on sale but I think everyone who had one last season should be given the opportunity to buy one to get their name put in the proverbial hat to decide who can attend games. Of course they'll be some who already have an ST and want to attend, some who have an ST and won't/can't attend and likewise for some who haven't got an ST yet.

 

[DearneValleyRover]

I believe we are back next Monday

 

[Fedora Dale]

I believe we are back next Monday

Same here AFAIK.

 

[Indian Dan]

Back training tomorrow. Similar capacity to Argyle. Triallists already lined up.

Can anyone actually see us playing without fans?

 

[Luke Imp]

As I thought, we're back Monday.

 

[THE LAST WALTZ]

Doubt if we are back yet.
We don’t even have enough for a five a side game

 

[Crewelad87]

Think we were back last Thursday

 

[Boletus Edulis]

Apparently we have two different groups/sessions for social distancing reasons at training. Lowe is now saying that they might take the players away on a tour in the UK and play pro teams for pre-season. Apparently there is a concern that the local amateur sides won’t be able to meet the protocols and testing for their players. I can see us, therefore, having a training camp in or around the Manchester conurbation.

 

[PuB]

We could technically be ‘back’, but we haven’t got any players so who knows

 

[Boletus Edulis]

We could technically be ‘back’, but we haven’t got any players so who knows

Sorry I was not following League 1 last year. Do you have problems, is this normal or were you waiting for when the league started in order not to waste money?

 

[PuB]

Sorry I was not following League 1 last year. Do you have problems, is this normal or were you waiting for when the league started in order not to waste money?

I don’t think we have problems as such, but we let everyone go who was out of contract. Still waiting to see what happens with the new season and if there is any kind of wage cap coming in. Add to that we have a chairman who has to keep us on an even keel so he can draw a (not insubstantial) wage every season, then we’re pretty much stuck from a transfer/new recruits perspective for now.

 

[Boletus Edulis]

I don’t think we have problems as such, but we let everyone go who was out of contract. Still waiting to see what happens with the new season and if there is any kind of wage cap coming in. Add to that we have a chairman who has to keep us on an even keel so he can draw a (not insubstantial) wage every season, then we’re pretty much stuck from a transfer/new recruits perspective for now.

I cannot help thinking that if A) you are not in financial jeopardy and B) you hold your nerve and do not panic, that could be a good strategy. The amount of money will be a lot less, possibly fifty percent cent less, but the number of players out of contract is large. There could be bargains for those who wait a little bit as reality strikes.

 

[PuB]

I don’t disagree with you at all, it’s just the reality of our own position.

 

[DearneValleyRover]

We are waiting on the result of the wage cap before recruitment starts, apparently our management aren’t overly worried at waiting

 

[GFC4EVA]

Were back next week confirmed by Evans today

 

[AusGill]

I prefer our strategy of waiting to sign players. With no income until fans are back, and even then the season will be on a knife-edge all the while Covid keeps kicking in. Money is tight but hopefully we can ride it out until things are back to a little more normality.

But SE reckons he'll be building a squad to go better than last season. If he does, hes done very well.

Expecting our first signing to be announced Friday and we are back training from Monday. I think with 1 new player we can have a 4 a side game. We have currently 1 keeper, 1 youth keeper and 6 outfield players.

 

[Luke Imp]

Tbh, I think most Clubs will have already signed players but some are waiting to announce them and then they'll pass it off as playing the long game.

 

[Boletus Edulis]

I prefer our strategy of waiting to sign players. With no income until fans are back, and even then the season will be on a knife-edge all the while Covid keeps kicking in. Money is tight but hopefully we can ride it out until things are back to a little more normality.

But SE reckons he'll be building a squad to go better than last season. If he does, hes done very well.

Expecting our first signing to be announced Friday and we are back training from Monday. I think with 1 new player we can have a 4 a side game. We have currently 1 keeper, 1 youth keeper and 6 outfield players.

To me that approach makes sense this year, but it requires either holding ones nerve or having no money so there is no alternative. Are your season tickets available yet? Pretty scary that for most clubs in our league this will be the vast majority of the income they get this year. Think we have sold over three and a half thousand so far.

 

[AusGill]

To me that approach makes sense this year, but it requires either holding ones nerve or having no money so there is no alternative. Are your season tickets available yet? Pretty scary that for most clubs in our league this will be the vast majority of the income they get this year. Think we have sold over three and a half thousand so far.

Think they are. We also pre-sold quite a few in the months before covid arrived last season and some on 2 year deals.

 

[Luke Imp]

All our testing of players and staff came back negative so everyone is back today.

 

[Boletus Edulis]

All our testing of players and staff came back negative so everyone is back today.

If ours pass their five day tests then this week they can stop being separated into two groups, and come together and have full contact.