The First Round of the FA Cup takes place over the weekend of 8/9 November and the involvement of the BBC, back as a broadcast partner of the FA, and some innovative coverage plans will hopefully make it a special weekend and one that whets the appetite for the remainder of the competition.
We have already seen the return to prominence of the cup draw itself with a peak time slot on Monday evening televison and radio and the Beeb are also hosting a special edition of Final Score next Sunday with highlights and goals as they happen from the eight games that have been scheduled for 2pm starts on that day.
I'm not sure whether this is something that they will be carrying on in later rounds and there are obviously some issues with travel for away fans on a Sunday but at this stage the promise of national television coverage and the £12,500 fee per club makes it an innovation worth trying.
For many non-league clubs of course this has been their aim throughout the qualifying rounds but for League One and Two sides the focus is avoiding an upset now and hopefully making it into the Third Round themselves.
A home draw then is welcome from that point of view but can be a difficult sell ticket-wise so plenty of clubs have already announced reduced prices as follows;
Mansfield Town v Concord Rangers - £10 adults and £5 concessions
Hartlepool United v East Thurrock United - £10 adults and £5 for over 60's and Under-16's
Coventry City v Worcester City - £10 adults and £5 children
Barnsley v Burton Albion - £10 adults, £5 concessions, £1 under-11's (this is an online only offer)
Tranmere Rovers v Bristol Rovers - £12 for adults, £8 for over 65's and young persons, £4 for under-17's
Northampton Town v Rochdale - £12 adults, £8 for senior citizens and under-21's, £5 for under-18's
A number of other games have been reduced to £15 for adults with various concessions.
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