Summer 2024

I assume that if you dont have kids you can turn up for free, but just won't have the "ticket" to enjoy the free rides or if there is something like a player Q&A in one of the rooms you won't have access, which is fair enough.

Let's face it, the open day is just a way to boost shirt sales and get fans to mingle with other supporters that they have not seen for a few months in the bars.

The Fun Days of yesteryear were great as my daughter had the chance to have photos and chat to her favourite players Beadle, Cureton, Hayles, The Duke etc.

There were so many different activities going on, so fair play to the likes of Steve Burns, Ian Holtby, John Keyes with coming up with new ideas - fairground rides, fire engines, army vehicles, police cars, fashion show, tour of the dressing rooms, a look round the boxes (when this was new), soccer skills display, Screen Soccer videos playing on the big screen, tombola, photos with the Watney Cup, market stalls, CT activities, plus different companies selling their wares which probably meant some form of sponsorship revenue, fancy dress comp, History Society displays - was there a stock one year where you could throw a wet sponge at a director (Boycey and Craig?) for charity, or was that a dream?

The last one I went to a few years ago with one of my grandkids was frankly very boring and mostly consisted of waiting in a long queue to get a shirt, with not much else going on apart from a training session on the pitch which was dull.

A bit too comercial these days but football has changed.

The days of Ollie, Reecey and Jocky being the last ones at the bar in the evening after a SC/Helpline event are long gone.

Still I expect the shirts to be unveiled just before, so that's something to look forward to and at the end of the day should make so decent money for the club.

Hopefully the rides are good and the young kids enjoy it and the new crop of players are happy to mingle with the fans and not be aloof like some of the recent past.

It is a real shame there is a charge this year when my children were younger they had photos tours etc all for free a great day out. The last few years have been a disappointment no tour of the stadium or rooms to meet the players in. Thankfully mine are now grown up but it was a great day on a weekend. During the week will not be great on families as parents work so another disappointment. I see Exeter have this free of charge and before anyone state I should support them I am just making a point how clubs are run differently.

www.exetercityfc.co.uk/news/2024/june/party-at-the-park

Exeter are very well run and don't lose £4m every season like us

Yes I fully agree, that as a fans owned club, with home gates about 25% lower than ours they do remarkably well. Before transfers fees they wouldn't have lost more than £1.4m in any of the last three years (to June 23) and with transfer fees they made a profit each year. I'm not sure how many activities are undertaken voluntary at Exeter, but with very similar numbers of employees, the Gas appear to spend about double on wages, which i'd guess is largely on players.   

What’s wrong with that? I’ve got a pair of the home ones which I use a fair bit

Likewise, although I don’t use mine a lot ! 

If the club had done the opposite you'd have posted why was they releasing swimming shorts at the end of the summer? 

Father Christmas.

Big week expected according to one or two of the twitter "ITKers".