October Already

A chill in the air, getting darker in the evenings and the end of the cricket season...it's October already.

Bexhill United share The Polegrove with the local cricket club which means no weekend matches early in the football season so they have reduced prices for this Saturday's return to action with the visit of Horsham YM.

It's football for a fiver, £3 concessions, £1 for U18's and free for accompanied U12's.

Pictures of The Polegrove show a very attractive looking grandstand and there is a nice page on the history of football in Bexhill on the club website. 

League Two for £2 (X2)

Clearly aware that I'd backed them to be relegated from League Two this season, Crawley Town are looking up towards the play-off places rather than nervously over their shoulders as we enter the final straight of the campaign.

Always active in their ticket offers throughout the time I've been writing this blog, the Red Devils are repeating their 2@£2 offer which means that tickets for both the visit of Doncaster Rovers on 29 March and Colchester United on 13 April are priced at just £2 in all areas of the ground.

Speaking to the official club website, General Manager Tom Allman said: "The players and management have already commented internally on how much they’re looking forward to playing in front of a big crowd and we hope that the fans can play their part, as they did at last year's fixtures, in what is shaping up to be two huge fixtures in our season."

Cheaper Football At Crawley Town

New owners, new manager and a new start for Crawley Town this summer with WAGMI United having completed a takeover of the Sussex club in April and with Kevin Betsy recently installed into the managerial hot-seat.

I'm not going to pretend I know much about WAGMI's business of cryptocurrency and NFT's, and there have been some doubts voiced as to how things may play out but one of the first moves of the new owners has been to bring down the cost of watching League Two football in this coming season.

That means a reduction of up to 34% on season tickets and, more relevant to this blog perhaps, a drop in matchday ticket prices which now start at £15 for an adult on the terraces.

More accompanied children can now go free following a change to the age limit on such tickets from  under 11 to under 16.

Co-chairman Preston Johnson told the official club website: "We want the matchday experience to be as vibrant as it can possibly be. 

"To help make that happen, we want to make it easier for families with kids to come down to the stadium and make a day of it."

Early sales have been good, with Johnson telling the Crawley Observer: “It has been positive and just great to meet many of the fans coming into the club the last few days as well."

I have plenty of sympathy with those people tasked with making League Two clubs both financially sustainable while making progress on the pitch.

It's a level where clubs have lots of regulatory burdens which prevent them from having the easy-going feel of a day watching non-league football while also being squeezed from above, certainly by the Premier League where the broadcast income allows for policies such as the price cap on away tickets.

WAGMI had previously shown an interest in buying Bradford City and their success in selling season tickets has continued this summer with over 14,000 already gone.

Elsewhere in League Two, Salford City have held their matchday prices which means a maximum of £15.

Burgess Hill Town FC

Neatly following on from some of the recent articles on the blog, on football in Sussex and Non-League Day, the Hillians have halved admission prices for their FA Trophy fixture at home to Phoenix Sports on Saturday 12th October.

General manager John Rattle told the club website: “We hope to see both old and new faces from the local community coming down to support their local Non-League football club.”

Adult entry will be £5, Concessions £3 and Under 18's free.

Brighton Rocks

A terrible title for the article but there are two good opportunities to catch a match under the flood-lights at the Amex Stadium on consecutive Friday nights in September with Brighton & Hove Albion Under 23’s in Premier League 2 action.

The Seagulls youngsters take on Everton on the 20th and then Tottenham Hotspur on the 27th. Both games are 7pm kick-offs and tickets are currently on general sale for both, priced at £5 Adults and £2 for Over 65’s and Under 16’s.

They are also the visitors to Stamford Bridge this coming Friday, the 13th, for a Premier League 2 game against Chelsea for which tickets are still on sale, priced at £5 Adults and free for those Under 20 and over 65.

Resurgent in recent seasons, Brighton are at the head of what seems to be quite a thriving football scene in Sussex generally with a good spread of clubs at all levels of the non-league game and Crawley Town of League Two who have featured regularly on these pages over the past few seasons with some innovative ticket offers.

The Southern Combination Football League covers the county at Steps 5,6 and 7.

Football For £1 At Crawley Town

Just under a year ago I wrote of Crawley Town that there was a 'sense of stability' on the managerial front as Harry Kewell prepared for his second campaign in charge of the Sussex club and that the Australian would be 'looking to push for the play-offs' in 2018/19.

Well, the Red Devils may have been slightly disappointed to have ended the campaign in 19th place in League Two but there was never any danger of relegation and they certainly enjoyed a better year than Kewell himself, lured away to Notts County at the end of August but out of the door in November, one casualty of a truly awful season at Meadow Lane.

The other part of last year's article holds true, however. Crawley continue to try and grow their fanbase, as a relatively new Football League club who have come a long way in a short space of time.

Swansea City's visit for a pre-season friendly on Saturday 13th July sees tickets priced at just £1 in all areas of the ground as part of the annual Fun Day with plenty of activities planned in addition to the game.

Amex Stage For Brighton Women

With a couple of huge crowds in Europe recently for Women's club matches, England manager Phil Neville said this week that he hoped to see more of the major stadiums in this country used for WSL and Championship fixtures.

And Brighton & Hove Albion Women will play their final home WSL match of the season, against Arsenal on Sunday 28th April at 12.15pm, at The Amex.

Free tickets are available for season ticket holders of both Mens and Womens' teams with general admission priced at £3/£1 before the day of the game.

Albion's Falmer home will also host Neville and his squad in their final World Cup warm-up fixture against New Zealand at 1pm on Saturday 1st June (tickets are priced at Adults £10, Concessions £1).

The England manager was also right to point that there is a solid base of attendances in the top two levels of the domestic game and there are lots of interesting matches to come between now and the big finish to the season on Saturday 11th May.

A good guide to upcoming fixtures can be found here while Aston Villa will be offering 'Pay What You Want' admission to their season finale against Crystal Palace.

Crawley Town FC

There is a sense of stability in the air at Crawley Town ahead of the 2018/19 season as Harry Kewell prepares for his second campaign in charge of the Red Devils.

Having made the move into senior management after working with Watford’s Under-23's, Kewell had to fight the perception that he wouldn't have the necessary steel to negotiate the 46-game marathon that is a season in the basement division of English football, one that has claimed fellow high-profile casualties such as Teddy Sheringham in the past.

Implementing his philosophy and a different way of playing took some time but steady progress was made throughout the year and Crawley finished comfortably in mid-table.

Linked with the vacant Charlton Athletic job earlier in the year, Kewell will now be looking to push for the play-offs and play his part in boosting attendances at the Broadfield Stadium.

The club are also doing their bit in this regard having held successful 'Pay What You Can' matches over the past two seasons as part of a wider move to engage with their local community.

Clubs such as Crawley and Stevenage, who featured on these pages a couple of months ago, have done so well in becoming part of the Football League landscape that it can be easily forgotten how far they have come in such a short space of time and how much effort is needed to keep growing and interacting with supporters old and new.

Crawley's final pre-season friendly takes place on Saturday 28 July against Belgian side KSV Roeselare and tickets for all areas of the stadium will cost just £1.

Lewes FC, Lewes FC Women

An historic 2018/19 season awaits both Lewes FC and Lewes FC Women with promotion for the men and the women gaining admission to the new FA Women's Championship, where they will rub shoulders with the new Manchester United side among others, just months after headlines were made with the intention for both sides to be paid equally.

The Dripping Pan has become quite a fashionable place to watch football in recent years, especially from the beach huts that have become a feature of the ground, but as with all Non-League clubs it is the hard work and dedication of many people behind the scenes that has made Lewes such a thriving set-up.

A Super Season Ticket is available for 2018/19 that covers all home league matches for both the Men (21 Bostik Premier League games) and Women (11 FA Women's Championship fixtures) and both the Development Squad and Under 18's.

Purchase before the end of June and it will cost £200 Adults and £100 Concessions with a four-month payment option also available.

Easter Monday Is 'Pay What You Can' At Crawley Town FC

Having been pleased with the 4,266 attendance and the goodwill generated by last season's dip into the 'Pay What You Can' waters, Crawley Town will be repeating the offer on Monday 2 April.

A minimum of £1 is all you will need to watch Harry Kewell's side in League Two action against Swindon Town.

Although there's just under two months to go to the game, it could be an important one in the promotion/play-off race and should top the Hartlepool gate where, interestingly, the average price paid per ticket was £4.

Operations Director Kelly Derham told the official club website: "We learned a lot from last season's Pay What You Can in terms of offering a bit more than just a football match, and we’re going to work hard to provide plenty of pre-match entertainment."

I think this point is crucial when a club is thinking off doing a 'Pay What You Want' or reduced admission fixture as a one-off.

Coventry City are holding a Community Day for the visit of Accrington Stanley this coming Saturday and it is the extra touches, in addition to the £5 tickets, that should make it an enjoyable occasion.

Tickets for the Crawley game go on sale on Thursday (Feb 8th).

Upwardly Mobile Brighton Face Man City Test

The Fourth Round Proper of the Women's FA Cup takes place on Sunday 4 February and sees the entry to the competition of clubs from the Women's Super League.

Pick of the ties is probably the meeting between Brighton & Hove Albion and Manchester City which takes place at Culver Road, kick-off 2pm, with tickets purchased in advance costing £6 Adults and £3 for Under-16's and Over-65's (£10 and £5 on the day).

The upwardly mobile Seagulls will see the game as test of their ambitions ahead of another restructuring of the Women's game next season when they will move into the top tier after a successful licence application.

Former England manager Hope Powell was appointed as head coach in the summer, attracted to the ambitious plans of the club which have perhaps been realised sooner than thought possible after the FA's decision to move to a fully-professional first division with strict criteria laid down for those wanting to be part of it.

City, however, have genuine hopes of winning four trophies as they lead WSL1, are into the final of the Continental Cup and the last eight of the Champions League and will be none too keen to relinquish their hold on the FA Cup.

They triumphed at Wembley last year in front of nearly 40,000 and tickets for the 2018 event, at Wembley on Saturday 5 May, will be priced at £15 Adults, £5 Concessions and free for Children.

Eastbourne Town FC

This Saturday at the Saffrons, Eastbourne Town v Loxwood

Free entry for all spectators #NonLeagueDay

Collection on gate @DemelzaHospice 🇺🇦 pic.twitter.com/3x7mT6zyin

— Pier Pressure (@ppETFC) 3 October 2017

A great picture and a nice gesture from supporters group Pier Pressure who are meeting all of the costs of this Saturday's game between Eastbourne Town FC and Loxwood in the Southern Combination Football League.

That has allowed the club to offer free entry to all on Non-League Day with a collection also being held by local charity Demelza.

Quids In For Opening Crawley Town Friendly

Crawley Town featured on these pages last season after taking the bold step, for a Football League club, of offering 'Pay What You Want' admission to their home match against Hartlepool United.

This summer has seen the League Two side appoint a new manager and a high-profile one at that as Harry Kewell, once of Liverpool and Leeds, has been given the opportunity to take his first senior managerial role at the Checkatrade Stadium.

A Chelsea XI will provide the first chance for home supporters to see a Kewell side in action when they visit Sussex on Saturday July 15 for a 3pm friendly.

A Family Fun Day is planned beforehand in addition to Crawley's new kit launch and, refreshingly, tickets will cost just £1 for all categories if purchased by 4:30pm the day before the game (£3 on the day).

It's a good gesture from the club, one that has little financial downside and plenty of potential benefits given the goodwill it will produce among the local community.

Pay What You Can at Crawley Town FC

Pay What You Want, or Pay What You Can, tends to be a Non-League affair in England although it has been done at Brentford in the past and also at Inverness Caledonian Thistle in the Scottish Premiership.

The initiative perhaps lends itself to people paying cash at a turnstile or gate rather than buying tickets in advance but that shouldn’t stop a pat on the back to Crawley Town for trying it out when Hartlepool United visit the Checkatrade Stadium for a League Two fixture on Saturday 17th January.

A minimum price of £1 has been set and all areas of the stadium are available apart from those held by season ticket holders.

Tickets can be purchased in advance at the box office or by phone and turnstiles will be open on the day for both home and away supporters to pay what they can.

Operations Director Kelly Derham told the official Crawley Town website: “We are delighted to be staging our first Pay What You Can game.

“January is traditionally a time when money is tight for everyone. The Hartlepool game is one of three fixtures in the month with Portsmouth the following week arguably our most attractive home game of the season.”

As I have written before on the blog, smaller clubs in Leagues One and Two face testing times as they balance the demands of maintaining full-time squads and the associated costs that come with that against a trend whereby the Championship is increasingly looking like a Premier League 2.

That task may be even harder for clubs such as Crawley who have risen so far in the past ten years but who are now looking to maintain their Football League place against a backdrop of attendances that have dipped below 2,000 at times this season.

Let's hope the 'Pay What You Can' offer can boost those numbers in January and increase awareness in the town of the efforts that the local club are making.

Hastings United, Folkestone Invicta

Having existed, under various names, since 1894, Hastings United FC currently ply their trade in the Ryman League Division One South but are in the mix for promotion via the play-offs this season.

They host a Sussex derby on Easter Monday (kick-off 3pm) against Peacehaven & Telscombe.

Admission prices have been reduced to just £2 Adults and £1 Concessions with Under-18’s getting in for free, as is the case throughout the season at the Pilot Field.

Staying in the same division, the champagne is on ice at Folkestone Invicta FC and the Ryman League Division One South title could be clinched as early as this Friday when a victory over Waltham & Hersham will see the Kent side move on to 99 points and an uncatchable lead over Dorking Wanderers.

Adult admission has been cut from £9 to £5, Concessions from £5 to £3 and those aged between 5 and 16 can come in for free with a paying adult.

Brighton Aim For Women's League Attendance Record

Brighton & Hove Albion Women will make their debut appearance at the Amex Stadium on Sunday 6th December when they face Charlton Athletic in the FA Premier League Southern Division.

And the Seagulls are aiming to break the attendance record for a domestic women's league fixture which currently stands at 3,180 for Manchester City's game against Notts County last month and which followed on from a successful World Cup for England's Women.

Both clubs have ambitions to make it into the Women's Super League and an entertaining game should be in prospect.

BHAFC season-ticket holders can attend for free, Adult tickets are priced at £4, Under-18's £2 and a family of two Adults and two Under-18's can watch for £10.

Hastings United FC

A belated mention to Hastings United FC, who offered free entry to Pilot Field on Saturday for an important fixture against Faversham Town.

900 came through the turnstiles to watch a 2-1 victory for the home side who now need a point at Walton & Hersham this coming weekend to preserve their Ryman League status.

'Pay What You Want' At The Seaside This Saturday!

Three 'Pay What You Want' games take place in various Non-League divisions this Saturday (21st March) and all three are by the seaside if you fancy a game of football and a stroll along the front as well.

In the Vanarama Conference South, Weston-Super-Mare AFC take on Concord Rangers. The club bar will be open from 11am with entry to the stadium from 1pm. To help the club gauge reaction to the 'Pay What You Want' initiative and gather information for future offers/promotions, entry will be through the Club function room where supporters will complete a quick Q&A.

Worthing FC of the Ryman League Division One South host Folkestone Invicta at Woodside Road. The club want to see as many shirts of different colours as possible and there will be half-time penalty contest with prizes on offer.

And Scarborough Athletic host Bamber Bridge in the Evo-Stik Division One North. The Seadogs are continuing their battle to return to Scarborough itself but are currently playing matches at Bridlington Town's Queensgate home.

Club director Nick Finch said: "Following the match abandonment we handed out tickets to allow all supporters access into the rescheduled game. However, we are aware that fans may not have kept hold of their tickets from the original fixture given the length of time between the two games."

"The Board has therefore decided to run a 'Pay What You Can' scheme, to give those who do not normally attend Scarborough Athletic games a chance to enjoy this fixture for as little or as much as they wish to spend. It also allows those who attended previously from Scarborough and Bamber Bridge the chance to enter for free or to make a contribution to cover the costs of putting the re-arranged fixture on".

Family Ticket Offer as Crawley Aim to Boost Crowds

Starting with Saturday's home game against Yeovil a family ticket offer has been launched by Crawley Town FC that will allow 2 adults and 2 under-16's to attend for £44, saving £12 on normal match day prices.

It comes after a dip in crowds so far this season. Fewer than 2,000 came through the gate for the recent League One clash with Fleetwood leading to CEO Michael Dunford issuing a rallying cry to the people of the town to come out and support them.

Having come so far, so fast, Crawley's low levels of support have to be put into context.

Like Wigan Athletic they are trying to build from a low base and Dunford identified one of the key problems when he said: "Lots of families have historical links with other clubs,especially clubs in London."

But, like Wigan, who is to say that the other Red Devils cannot reach the Championship or even the top-flight?

Premiership cash may have created an 'us and them' scenario but there is space left by the casualties of the race to grab it for 'smaller' well-run clubs to move in. If that means marketing the club as a 'second team' almost for local supporters of Spurs, Arsenal, Brighton or whoever then so be it.

As Mr Dunford also said: "Maybe in another ten years’ time on a Saturday, we will have convinced them to come along and watch their local club, feel part of it, that’s our biggest challenge."