Dear Supporter,
The Covid-19 situation in Scotland is continuing to improve and we’re looking forward to welcoming you back to Bayview in the very near future. This is the news we have all been waiting for after 18 months of playing games behind closed doors.
We had been making plans to allow fans into our friendly match against Burntisland Shipyard on Tuesday 6th July as a trial run but unfortunately this will just not be practical due to the layout of the stadium. With the current social distancing measure of 2 metres, it brings the total capacity of the stand down to under 220 people. This includes everyone from players, backroom staff, directors, support staff, media, everyone! Our red zone for players & officials covers a disproportionate area of the stand meaning that the total number of spectators, spread out over both the home and away sections, would be under 150, making it impractical and cost prohibitive to do so for a friendly match.
The latest government forecast is for the whole of Scotland to move to Level 0 on the 19th of July, allowing up to 2000 fans to attend stadia with the potential for no outdoor social distancing, and then beyond Level 0 from the 9th of August, when all social distancing requirements could be lifted. However, should the current social distancing measures still be in place when the competitive games commence, we WILL allow fan access.
Regardless of social distancing restrictions in place at the time, we will be selling tickets for the home Premier Sports Cup group matches against Dundee United (20th July) and Elgin City (24th July). Season ticket holders will be given priority access to purchase tickets for these games. As previously stated, priority will be given to those who renewed earliest. We are in negotiation with both clubs regarding admission prices and full details of this will be released as soon as possible. Demand for the Dundee United game, in particular, will be high, so I ask you to book your ticket as early as possible once the details are announced. We are also working hard with our colleagues at Future Ticketing to try & have our new online purchasing and stadium entry system in place for the return of fans but please bear with us on this.
More importantly the removal of social distancing will allow all fans access to our home games for our cinch League One campaign this coming season. I know that several of you have been holding back in purchasing your season ticket until it was known if you could attend games, and I fully understand that point of view, but hopefully this news will give you the confidence to secure your seat for what is going to be a highly competitive league.
To those who have renewed their season tickets, or bought one for the first time, I extend sincere thanks from me & my board of directors. Renewals of season tickets for season 2021/22 have exceeded our expectations to date but, as always, we would welcome more so please tell your friends.
As always, your support is greatly appreciated and with your help, we will soon be seeing some well kent faces at Bayview very soon.
Yours in sport
Jim Stevenson
