And there it is, another season all over. Time to sit back, relax, put our feet up and spend some time in the garden, enjoying the sun…if only! As soon as the final whistle blew at Dorking Wanderers last weekend, the hard work began in preparing for the next season – with player signings, sponsorship renewals, ground maintenance, tea bar refurbishments (including a new refreshment stand at the far end of the main stand, thank you to Bucks Garden Rooms for funding this), as well as pitch repairs to start as soon as the Comedy Trophy finishes, season tickets to be made available, a new website to start building; now the football is over, this is one of our busiest ever times behind the scenes for the off field CUFC volunteers.

Before I get on to that, I must say a very special thank you to all our supporters throughout the course of the season, especially those of you that have travelled away to games to give the team tremendous vocal support, whatever the results. You once again made everyone at the club feel very proud at Dorking Wanderers last Saturday, despite a 0-2 defeat, you people were the winners. The same goes at Hemel Hempstead where we didn’t put in our best performance on the pitch, but the vocal support from the huge Chesham following was unbelievable. Thank you. It does not go unnoticed.

I did last week mention our Players Injury & Rehabilitation Fundraising that I make no apology for referencing again because it is so important to the ethos of the club that we are seen to look after our players, especially when it affects their livelihood. Please, if you can spare a few pounds, whatever the amount, it would make a big difference. Many of you will know that one of our senior players, Ryan Upward, sustained a nasty Achilles injury in the Farnborough game a few weeks ago and although the club have helped to fund the diagnosis and operation that will give him the fastest possible return, he still has many months of recuperation ahead of him. Ryan is self-employed with a young family and has lost his source of income. Whilst we obviously have a required level of insurance for all our players, it does not cover this level of support. If you were able to help by donating or help by sharing the GoFundMe page across social media, please do so. Click here for details.

I said the hard work of preparing for next season starts now, but before we tear into the pitch and give it a full repair and makeover, we have the Alex Horne Comedy match next Saturday at The Meadow, a game you will not want to miss. We have already sold over 3,200 tickets for this event so if you are looking for a fun packed afternoon watch the re-match of Chicken City v Egg United, book your tickets now to avoid disappointment. Tickets are available from the club website and lookout for more hilarious updates on social media as we get closer to the day.

Also available from the website are tickets for the very special Treorchy Male Voice Choir performing at Chesham Broadway Baptist Church to not only provide an unforgettable evening for our town, but all proceeds will go to Bucks Mind, our charity partner for the past few seasons. Please do go online to book your tickets now, this is another event that will sell out.

On Monday evening the Board had a presentation from our managers, James Duncan and Michael Murray, which was simply brilliant. They outlined where we are, where we want to be and how they believe we can get there. Needless to say they have the full backing of the board and although like every manager they would like to have more money to spend, they know we have no intention of stretching beyond our means and I know they will do an excellent job with the playing budget we have agreed for next season.

We also had a meeting to discuss the new website that we are starting work on now and hope to have launched in its initial stage in the next few weeks. The new site will be much more user friendly, easier to navigate and be of huge benefit to not just our supporters, but our much-appreciated sponsors also where we will be able to raise awareness of their products and services to a wider audience, as well as more information about all the other teams associated with Chesham United, including our youth and women’s teams. Watch this space. I am very excited about this project.

Thank you for your support, although the football is over for another season, I will continue to provide my weekly updates of everything that is going on in and round the club.

Peter Brown