Have a Gander

The first time I became aware of Sutton United was in trying circumstances for a Coventry City supporter, listening to the radio commentary of a famous FA Cup giantkilling in 1989, Barrie Williams, Matt Hanlan and all.

But that win is just part of the club's long history since its formation in 1898 and with well over a century of football now under their belts at Gander Green Lane.

During the lifetime of this particular blog, Sutton have made it into the EFL for the first time and subsequently returned to the National League but have always been proactive with ticket offers.

That continued last season with the 'Pack the Lane' game against Truro City which attracted the biggest crowd of the campaign and a similar deal is in place for the visit of Solihull Moors on Saturday 14 November (during the second international window).

Tickets are priced at £2 general admission for adults and over-14's (£5 in the main and family stands) with all under-14's tickets at £1.

Watch England C For Free At Sutton United

The England C team was formed in 1979 as the England Non-League team (initially under the management of Howard Wilkinson) and for over 35 years has provided players from outside the Football League with the opportunity to pull on the national team shirt, belt out the anthem and get a taste of what it is like to travel the world and represent your country.

Looking back over the team’s results over the past decade, the names of goalscorers such as Steve Morison, Andre Gray and George Boyd jump out, just three of the players to have represented England at this level before going to have very good professional careers (and play internationally for Scotland in Boyd’s case!)

Restructing and financial cutbacks at the Football Association recently threatened the existence of the team but a solution was found and Paul Fairclough, manager of the team since 2003, is currently guiding his charges through the International Challenge Trophy tournament.

England started with a win in Kiev in March against Ukraine and they return home on Sunday 5 June to take on Slovakia Under-21’s.

Fairclough’s 16-man squad includes Omar Bogle, scorer of the two goals that saw Grimsby Town promoted at Wembley recently and Woking midfielder John Goddard who will be joining Swindon Town this summer.

The game, which kicks-off at 2pm, will take place at the Gander Green Lane home of National League newcomers Sutton United and will have free admission for anyone who wishes to attend.

Season Ticket Prices Slashed At Ossett Town

Evo-Stik Northern Premier League First Division North side Ossett Town are making a big push to attract new supporters for the forthcoming 2015/16 season with the club having cut the cost of a season ticket close to 50% from the previous campaign.

That means Adult prices of £75 with Concessions and Full Time Students paying £40. For 21 league games an adult is paying less than £4 a match!

Pay on the gate admission has been kept at the same level as last season.

I've also been sent a tweet regarding Sutton United who have their first 1,000 season tickets available at the following prices; Adults £99, Concessions £75, Teens £20, Kids £10.

A great offer and I'll even forgive them for beating Coventry City in the FA Cup all those years ago!

Pay What You Want & £99 Season Tickets at Sutton United

Sutton United host Hayes & Yeading United at Gander Green Lane this Saturday (7th March) in the Conference South and the club have made it a 'Pay What You Want' fixture with the aim of repeating last season's successful initiative against Basingstoke.

Top comedian, and Sutton fan, Tim Vine will again be in attendance while the club's chosen charity, St Raphael's Hospice in North Cheam, will also be present.

Longer-term, the club have announced a number of initiatives that they hope will boost their supporter base and strengthen links with the local community such as the installation of a new 3G pitch.

Ticket-wise, the first 1,000 applicants for 2015/16 are able to purchase a season ticket for £99 (£4.71 per game). Reductions are in place for Concessions (£75), Teens (£20) and Kids (£10).

Also this Saturday, 'Operation 500' at Frome Town aims to get a biggest crowd of the season through the gate for the home game against Hungerford Town in the Evo-Stik League Southern Premier Division by means of a 'Pay What You Want' offer.

Sutton United Reap The Benefit Of Their Hard Work

A superb crowd of 2,172 came through the gates at Sutton United on Saturday afternoon to watch the Skrill South game against Basingstoke and it was not just the 4-0 victory for the home side that sent the vast majority of them home in good spirits.

Those coming down to Gander Green Lane were allowed in free, with 'Pay What You Like' collections raising £2,577 which the club say 'compares very favourably with an average gate receipt'.

Supporters were also able to see comedian Tim Vine take on a host of roles around the club throughout the day in aid of charity partners St Raphael's Hospice.

Having written about a number of 'Pay What You Like' games throughout the current season it is clear that the initiative has a big future but also that it requires plenty of work to make it work.

Sutton distributed 20,000 leaflets across their borough in the build-up to the game and also made full use of social media to publicise it.

The benefits go way beyond one 'feel-good' afternoon with the club having generated untold goodwill among their local population which should be continued by the reduction in ticket prices between now and the end of the season.

£10 adult admission begins on Tuesday night when Gosport Borough are the visitors and I'm sure more than a few people who enjoyed their day on Saturday will be back.