The end of the month sees our chairman Derek Graham provide an update from our board to keep all of our supporters and partners, helping you keep up to date with the clubs progress. Please get in contact if you have any comments or suggestions.
"A lot to tell you this month as we build up to the start of next season. Although it feels like the middle of winter as I write this on Bank Holiday Monday, I am sure we will all soon again be enjoying our football in the sun.
Social media blackout and actions First, you may have been aware that we went quiet on the social media front over the weekend. This was in solidarity with the wider football community initiative to stamp out online abuse. Sadly this is on the rise, and we all need to stand together to eradicate it from our game. At the club we thought we should go further and have initiated an online reporting mechanism. This is entirely confidential, but will let us help stamp out this attack on our game. You can find it at the top of our website on every page.
You may also have noticed that for a period of time we had a sticking plaster over our Robin on our social media channels. This was in support of the UNICEF vaccination programme, and is just another example of where we are lending our support to initiatives that go beyond the football pitch to support our community and beyond. We were delighted that we were featured by Crowdfunder in their examples to encourage others and showcased to UNICEF.
Signings and the return of football On the football front, I am delighted that Sam Teale has renewed his contract, and Kane Simpson has signed his first for the Club. There may well be some more in due course, but I am pleased that we can now enter the new season knowing we have stability in two key positions.
Onto the upcoming season, we now know that the League is going to start on 14th August and for us the FA Cup on either that date or the 21st. We are waiting to hear at which round we are going to join the competition. We had a great FA Cup run last season and I am confident we can do the same again. So no pressure Danny!
The pre-season fixture list is being firmed up, but we are waiting on some clubs to come back to us to confirm dates etc… we’re excited to announce more, but right now we have two confirmed home friendlies.
Bath City - Tuesday 6th July at 7.30 p.m.
Weston-super-Mare - Friday 16 July at 7.30 p.m.
Details of ticket sales for these games will be posted soon and will be available online.
In our other teams it is great to see some football back underway with the Frome Town Women back on the pitch and back to winning ways. As well as our Youth Teams at Frome Town United back up and running for all the children of Frome.
Back to #BA11 We’re now in full flow with Season Tickets and Flexi Tickets. We’ve offered all our existing ticket holders a range of options. As you can probably imagine, understandably things have been complicated by the ‘null and void’ decision for the last season and the curtailing of the season before. With the complexity of the Crowdfunder rewards and discounts thrown in the mix as well. But once again I want to thank all those who have donated their season ticket monies to the club and those that have been flexible. We’re also continuing to ask matchday fans to purchase tickets online this coming season. It not only makes life a lot easier for us to plan each matchday, in regard to volunteers and security, it dramatically reduces our administration and helps reduce congestion at the turnstiles. This upcoming season will see the turnstiles split with one cash gate and one pre-paid gate. So make sure you buy online to avoid the queues.
We have all seen the outrage and fall out from the European Super League, we are certain that more fans will now look to local football, for an environment that is community driven and helping to bring pride to our local area both on and off the field. We are launching our “Back to #BA11” campaign this week, as we need all your help in driving up our attendances so that we can get 400, 500 or more through our gates and enjoy the experience of supporting local sports teams. So if you know anyone who is walking away from top flight football, you know where to point them!
We're asking fans to send in videos of why they love Frome, but unfortunately we need more to be sent in for the video to work. So don't be shy, take a couple of minutes out of your day to help out.
50/50 Prize draw Further more, again I’m humbled by those who have again generously donated their 50/50 prize money back to the club. This does not go unrecognised and these amazing gestures mean a lot to us.
Our summer events Back off the field, our Summer Events have been announced. So make sure you explore #BA11 Live on Sunday 4th July, where we have amazing free football experiences for the children of Frome, with free Live Music in partnership with Frome FM in the afternoon. That evening we will also be putting on an open air Cinema experience. All of these activities form part of our efforts for Frome Festival and giving back to our town. The weekend before sees something very different, as we run our Super Sixes competition at Frome Town United’s pitches. Which will see our first team from our Mens and Womens teams pit themselves against other 6-a-side teams from across the region. One for the players and the fans. So don’t miss that on Sunday 27th June. We’re still looking for a final few more teams, so if you are interested check that out as well.
Clubhouse news Last month we commented on the situation with the clubhouse and that more details will follow. Some of you may have noticed an announcement from Frome Town Holdings Ltd on the situation in respect of the Clubhouse. We remain separate from this situation and we wish the new tenants all the best when they reopen on May 17th. We are delighted that our wonderful clubhouse will continue, and we are looking forward to working with them in the future across matchdays and other events.
Finally, we hope that you are excited as us about getting Back to #BA11, bring on the football! If you have any questions, please get in touch.
'Del'
Derek Graham
Chairman