This week really does feel a step closer to getting our football back with live games on the television and the Southern League sending out a survey to clubs to get their views about how the season can restart and how we would feel about having to operate at 25% capacity. My answer to that is very simple – Yes, we would love to get up and running with crowds of 1,250!

Joking aside, even taking the current health & safety capacity of 3,000 the restriction on crowd numbers will not be an issue and we will be chomping at the bit to get restarted. That will require a huge amount of preparation, and I can assure you that we will take all necessary precautions with regards to social-distancing and hand-sanitising if we did reach that stage. We have the capacity to open additional turnstiles to help the crowds in safely and we will ensure there is hand sanitisation around with particular attention given to how we will operate toilets within the ground.

We do also need to consider the impact on income in terms of the clubhouse and bar-takings, however we will look at ways that we can run a safe bar with clearly marked queuing and distancing signs along with any screens, masks or shields as deemed necessary to protect our staff that will be working. No promises of when all this might happen, it will I’m sure depend on the responses of all the clubs in the league along with government guidance, and we must respect that, but we are keen to get up and running.

We are starting to talk to sponsors again, and I really appreciate the backing they have been giving us. At this stage we are not necessarily looking for upfront payment, but an indication of commitment enables us to budget for the months ahead and make sure we do not fall into the trap of over-spending based on optimistic forecasts. A big thank you to AP Green, Asprey Harris, Church View Funeral Services and Alexander Churchill Accountants who have already signed up for our new Claret Club (replacing the Corporate Patron Scheme) and to Phil Morgan who has committed to ball sponsorships for the new season.

For more information on sponsorship packages, or to discuss potential partnerships, contact the commercial team at commercial@cheshamunited.co.uk or you can email me directly at chairman@cheshamunited.co.uk. As I say, we are very open to working together on payment including the option of paying by monthly instalments, we will still do all we can to promote your business through Chesham United FC and our wider community.

We are also looking for new volunteers for our media team, especially a new photo and videographer for the new season. We are delighted with the fact that Jess Harding who’s highlights you will have seen last year recently secured a job with a Football League club to join their media team. A big thank you to Jess for his efforts and we are delighted that his work with us and the Ladies team last year was noticed. These voluntary roles would include filming first team matches, player and manager interviews, content editing and working with the club to produce high quality content. Are you savvy when it comes to social media? Do you enjoy creating video content? Perhaps you’re looking for a career in journalism or communications? If you are interested, please contact press@cheshamunited.co.uk for more info.

On the football side I know James and Michael are working hard, desperate to be able to get the lads together to start a form of training. There has been some interest in our team from clubs in higher divisions which gives an indication of the quality of squad they have pulled together, but I am confident that with the full backing of the club and all the supporters, we will start the new campaign with a competitive squad that will be entertaining to watch.

Stay safe and thank you once again for your ongoing support.

 

Peter Brown, Chairman

Chesham United Football Club

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