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    Match Info: Glossop North End (H), Sat 24th Feb, 3pm KO

    After the trials and tribulations of a trip to the Isle of Man last weekend, the lads earned a well-deserved break at the start of the week ahead of this weekend’s visit of Glossop North End to Gigg Lane.

    Manager Dave McNabb recognised the team’s efforts in first of all getting to the Manx island, before putting in a special effort to come away with a valuable 2-0 win and a brace from Sam Burns.

    In adverse conditions, you find out a lot about who’s around you. Whether that be on the pitch or in the stands. Both players and fans made a special commitment in being there to support each other last weekend, and we must do so again this Saturday.

    Glossop visit Gigg Lane again, after being our opponents in our first competitive game back at Gigg Lane all the way back in July. A special occasion no doubt, with a resounding scoreline to boot.

    However, it was to come to nothing in the eyes of the league soon after with an ineligible player contributing to the game. The game was removed from the list and ordered to be played again, with an additional three-point penalty handed down to the club at the same time. A fact that has rankled with supporters no doubt.

    However, we go into this game in great form and despite points deductions, sit top of the league heading into the game. With only 10 games to go after this, we need you all there to bring the boys home.

    Get on down to Gigg Lane this weekend, all your match information can be found below.
        Alcohol Sales Resume At Gigg Lane
    This weekend will see the restrictions placed on the sale of alcohol during the game start to lift. for more information click here
      In Opposition – Glossop
    The club was founded in 1886 and joined the North Cheshire League four years later. Glossop spent two seasons each in The Combination and the Midland League, before moving to North Road and being elected into the Football League Second Division in 1898. Having been promoted in the 1898–99 season, they spent one season in the First Division. During this period the club was bankrolled by Sir Samuel Hill-Wood, who was later to become chairman of Arsenal. The club retains some connections with Arsenal. Glossop were relegated in 1900 and spent the next fifteen seasons in the Second Division, before exiting the Football League during World War I.
    Post-war, they spent 1920 to 1957 in the Manchester League, being crowned champions in 1927–28. They moved from the Lancashire Combination back to the Manchester League in 1966, and then spent four seasons in the Cheshire County League from 1978 before the North West Counties was formed in 1982 in which Glossop were founder members, they had a 33-year stint in the league before winning the Premier Division title at the end of the 2014–15 campaign. They were beaten finalists in the FA Vase in 2009 and 2015.
    In April 2023 GNE were relegated from Step 4 after a period of eight years, ending manager Stuart
    Mellish’s two-year stint at the helm. Michael Worthington was appointed as manager in the summer of 2023 as the Hillmen head into their first season back in the NWCFL.
      Tickets & Admission

      General sale tickets are available online HERE, which includes hospitality tickets in the Main Stand.

    We recommend purchasing a ticket ahead of the game to allow us to plan appropriately in the ground.

    Please follow requests from volunteers and stewards for directions if unsure.

    Prices*: £10 adult, £5 16-18, £3 Under 16s & Free for Under 5s.
    1885 Suite: £40* per ticket
    * plus booking fees
    Buy Tickets HERE   Pay on the Gate: Whilst encouraging supporters to buy online ahead of the game, turnstiles will be available to take cash & card payments.

    Away Supporters: Visiting supporters will be directed to the Cemetery End entrance.
      Season Ticket Holders: We have recognised the requests from some season ticket holders who wish to be sat in the Main Stand, instead of the currently allocated South Stand. The first 250 season ticket holders who wish to watch from the Main Stand, can do so by admission at the turnstile.

    Please arrive early to secure your seat, with allocations made on a first-come, first-served basis.

    Click here to purchase online tickets. Read here on how to access your tickets digitally.
      On the Day & In the Ground
    Travel: Gigg Lane is accessible by car and is well served by public transport, please see our page on the TfGM website, which advises the best travel routes to the stadium. Directions can be sourced via Google Maps below.
      SatNav Postcode: BL9 9HR
    WhatThreeWords: ///issues.skins.span

      Parking: Our new car-park policy for the upcoming season is now in force.
      Due to the limited space within the car park at Gigg Lane, it is reserved for the following:
    Team Playing Staff and Management Match and Competition Officials Club Staff and volunteers transporting matchday equipment Members of the 1885 Suite  Sponsors Blue Badge Holders   If you have a blue badge or mobility issues please email the club secretary at secretary@buryfc.co.uk at least TWO days before the game.  Blue Badge holders shall be prioritised for a parking space.
      Entrance to the car park is strictly controlled and includes the areas within and in front of the fenced area.  Please contact the Club Secretary with any other related queries.
      There is on-street parking in the residential areas surrounding Gigg Lane, with supporters reminded to be respectful and considerate of the local residents at all times, as well as being mindful of and adhering to the parking permit measures in place in close proximity to the ground.
      Stadium Entry: Gates will open at 1:30pm.
      Our matchday volunteers will be on hand, both outside the turnstiles and inside the ground, to guide supporters to where they need to be. If you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask those who are there to help the day.
      Matchday Programme: You can purchase a programme online now, to collect at the merchandise stall ahead of the game or head to the sellers in and around the ground. Price of £3.

    Pound for the Ground: Our ‘Pound for the Ground’ half-time raffle tickets will be on sale in and around the ground, £1 per entry. Sellers accept cash or card, with 40% of the total pot going to the winning ticket with results announced over the PA system and on the scoreboard.

    Food / Drink: Our new catering partner, Quirky Catering, operate the kiosks throughout the ground, and are accessible for supporters under the stands. A selection of hot and cold snacks will be available. Alcohol will be unavailable in kiosks for the time being, full details available here. Please respect the advice from stewards on managing this process on the day.
      Starkies bar Starkies: For those with tickets in the Main Stand, access to Starkies will be available from when the gates open with drinks required to be consumed in the bar only for the next two games. The bar is limited to a set number and this will be managed by stewards through the day.

    After the game, supporters from other areas of the ground can gain access to Starkies via the ground floor entrance in that corner of the ground – subject to the maximum capacity not being exceeded.
      Keep #GiggGleaming: With so much work gone into Gigg Lane to get us to this point, we want to keep it that way and a lot of work goes into turning the ground around between games each weekend. We have a team of volunteers lined up to clean the stands following the game.

    With this in mind, we urge all supporters to make sure any rubbish is processed in the correct manner, using the available bins where necessary, or if possible please take any rubbish away with you.
      Designated Smoking Areas: Supporters are not allowed to smoke / vape anywhere within the stands at Gigg Lane. Designated areas are set aside to do this, follow guidance from stewards on this and only smoke / vape within these areas.
      #NonLeagueDogs: For now, dogs are NOT permitted in the ground.
      Match Coverage & Live Stream
    If you are unable to make it to the action at Gigg Lane, we’ll have all the live coverage across our media platforms.

    Live Stream: For this game, we will have no live stream. Keep up-to-date with all our video content via the club’s YouTube Channel. Click to subscribe and never miss highlights and match reaction across the season.
      Audio Commentary: Roch Valley Radio will be providing commentary for this game. Join the team from the press box at Gigg Lane. Click here ahead of kick-off to listen live. Audio commentary will be provided for every game of the season, so you will never miss a piece of the action.
      Social Media: Our team will also bring you in-depth text commentary via the club ‘MatchDay Live‘ Twitter feed, with team news and score-line updates available also on Facebook and feel like you are there with our match galleries and imagery available over on Instagram.
      Whatever the weather, wherever you are across the globe, we have you covered.
      Up the Shakers!
      #ShakersTogether | #BuryFC | #PartofIt
    View the full article

    • Bury News Feed
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    PITCH INSPECTION: Glossop North End (H)

    With continuing rain in the Bury area over the past couple of days, today’s uncover of the pitch has exposed some areas of concern and a pitch inspection has been able to be arranged for first thing on Saturday morning.
      The ground staff and volunteers were on hand to remove the covers this afternoon after the rain stopped. They continue to work on the pitch to alleviate these problems and we hope for the weather to match predictions overnight and give it the best chance to drain.
      An update will be provided tomorrow as soon as we know the results of the inspection.
      As always, keep across the latest from the club on the website, X / Twitter & Facebook.
      View the full article

    • Bury News Feed
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    Alcohol Sales Resume at Gigg

    Alcohol sales at Gigg Lane will resume for this weekend’s visit of Glossop North End.

    Kiosks in the South Stand and Cemetery End, will serve alcohol alongside their range of soft drinks and hot food. Sales will end in the kiosks at the start of the second half.

    On the advice of our stakeholders, alcohol sales will be limited to TWO drinks per transaction.

    Starkies will be open as normal in the Main Stand with drinks not being permitted to be taken into the stands during the second half. Starkies will remain open to all at full-time, until last orders at approx. 7pm.

    We understand supporters’ frustrations at some of restrictions that have been put in place, and appreciate your patience during this period, whilst we reintroduce alcohol sales in a phased manner.
      #ShakersTogether | #BuryFC | #PartofIt
      View the full article

    • Bury News Feed
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    Treasureline: Week 39

    This week’s Treasureline Winners for Week 39 – 21st February 2024 are in! The rollover this week was £500 and remember it can reach up to a life-changing £10,000!!

    Want to be part of it? Join here
    Prize Draw No. Members Name £500 Rollover PB0286 NO WINNER £1000 NL4026 A CROWSON £100 HL0194 L MILLS £50 SB0068 S AMISON £50 LK0644 R TETLEY £25 NQ4261 R HARDING £25 NJ3044 G ARMITAGE £10 HK1187 P CLAXTON £10 LJ2805 G HARROP £10 HL5220 L THURLOW £10 HM2925 L WALTON £10 LN6342 K MOUNTAIN £10 HA5024 M SCOTT £10 NN6465 M CASSIDY £10 HB5160 J BROWN £10 HM4214 P THOMAS £10 HC4337 B MARTIN Bury FC is a partner of NYCDA and a beneficiary of the NYCDA Weekly Draw. Gambling Commission account number 5166. Registered Office: 1-2 Frecheville Court, Bury, BL9 0UF. Responsible Person: Mr M Brocklehurst. For more information, please visit www.nycdaweeklydraw.co.uk/treasureline.
     
    View the full article

    • Bury News Feed
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    Introducing Neil Sears

    The club is pleased to announce Neil Sears as its Club Secretary and General Manager.

    The search for a General Manager began last year and paused whilst board elections were held. It was picked up again this year with input and guidance from a number of people, including a former EFL CEO.

    The ideal candidate was already within our ranks. Neil has fulfilled the role of Club Secretary on a part-time basis since October and that gave us a chance for him to work with us and see how we got on. His dedication and work ethic has impressed everyone.

    Neil already had an strong CV, with experience of senior corporate roles in the retail and leisure sector. He retrained in 2020 to pursue his passion, a career in sport, obtaining a first class honours degree in Sports Business and Law from UCFB. He’s picked up recent experience working with Burnley FC, UEFA, Beswick Sports Agency and the Fan Experience Company, in addition to his secretarial role with Bury.

    He will work full-time for the club, with the two stadium managers also reporting into him.

    This appointment promises another step up in the professionalism and pace of change in the club, as we continue with our strategy of blending highly qualified staff with sector expertise in with our hard working  volunteers.

    Neil made comment to buryfc.co.uk on his appointment:
        Marcel de Matas, Chair, said:
        Welcome to the club, Neil!
      View the full article

    • Bury News Feed
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    YouTube: VS FC IoM (A) 18 Feb | Match Highlights | Bury FC

    Highlights are brought to you by Autosave Ltd, Proud sponsors of Bury Football Club. Thank you for your continued support of the club. Bury FC is a community, fan-owned football club competing in the North West Counties Football League Premier Division. #BuryFC | #partofit

    • Bury News Feed
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    3G Pitch Build and Funding FAQ on Leasing

    FAQ on the Lease
    We would like to clarify a few points about the lease to cover any concerns.
    Q: Would you need a lease if the ownership of the club had changed as originally anticipated under the merger?
    A: Yes. If the ownership of the club had changed and the benefactors had put the money promised in, we would still need a lease or similar. Unless the football club directly owns the stadium we have to have a lease or a 'license to occupy' in place.
    There has been no structure discussed at any point where the club directly owns the stadium, and this is currently impossible to achieve as it can’t be transferred out of The Bury Football Club Company Limited under the Articles of Association for that company. We currently have a licence to occupy which is insufficient for funding purposes as it is very short term, lasting only a season.
    The league, having consulted with the FA, also advised us this week that a lease is preferable as it gives more security to the club. The email from the league states
    ‘Having viewed your proposed lease agreement and sought guidance from the FA who are aware of the legal structures that form Bury FC and that a holding company owns Gigg Lane. The general opinion is a long term lease rather than a annual licence is a good move and provides longevity of security for the football club. Just for clarity, and for compliance with the FA Standardised League Rules, the lease should be agreed and signed with a copy to the League Secretary by no later than 31st March 2024.’
    Q: Does a lease transfer ownership of the stadium to another company?
    No. A lease does not transfer the ownership of the stadium out of The Bury Football Club Company Limited. The freehold remains with that company. The suggestion that the stadium is being transferred to a new company is completely incorrect. We asked a law firm to confirm that this is the case for the avoidance of doubt, and that the granting of a lease does not contravene the Articles of The Bury Football Club Company Limited or its asset lock provisions. It does not. An excerpt of the response from the law firm is copied below:
    ‘There is a distinction to be made here between the lease of the stadium and the transfer of the stadium. The granting of a lease of the stadium doesn’t constitute a transfer of the asset from The Bury Football Club Company Limited (the Company) because there will be no transfer of the freehold title (HMLR title number GM931156, according to the lease we have been provided with) which is the asset for the purposes of the relevant article. The Company will remain the proprietor of Gigg Lane Stadium. The position would be different if it was proposed that the Company would be transferring its interest in the freehold but that isn’t the case here because the grant of a lease relates to the creation of a new proprietary interest and the Company’s existing proprietary interest remains in situ. The wording in the articles does not preclude the lease of any of the Company’s assets- only the transfer. We therefore do not agree with Matthew’s assertion that this provision prevents the Company from entering into the proposed lease.’
    Q: Does the club rent Gigg Lane?
    A: The society owns a controlling interest in both the stadium and the football club. They are both subsidiaries of the society, and we are required to make both a success. Internal legal agreements between subsidiaries are very common in business, and leases are used by other recipients of funding from the Community Ownership Fund. There is no rental payment under the lease, just an obligation on the football club to pay for maintenance and repairs.
    Q: What do other stakeholders think?
    The Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities have a charge on the ground for £1m for the 25 year term of their grant. They have reviewed the protections in place which would prevent the club as leaseholder endangering the security of the ground and are comfortable with them. They asked for two minor amendments to the lease which have been made, having agreed to it in principle.
    Bury Council have adopted the same position as the Football Foundation by requiring a long term lease to be in place prior to their funding. They have the same reasons as the FA and league, it gives greater security, and that gives greater certainty to investors. The stadium does not work without the football club playing there, as we saw from the £80k+ loss in the previous financial year. The football club continues to subsidise the stadium, a 3G pitch will help with this. Bury Council have kindly allowed us to copy their note to us below which make this very clear:
    ‘The Council is committed to working closely with the newly elected board and wider partners to discuss the progressing of plans for the transformation of the Gigg Lane stadium as a sustainable community asset.
    The Council has agreed to make a financial contribution to ensure the success of the principle of community ownership. Any plan for the Stadium should include the active use of the facility to bring benefit to the people of Bury outside of match days, this could be achieved through the provision of accessible sports facilities and the development of community facilities operating from within the stadium. 
    The delivery of this vision is not only compatible, but dependent on the issuing of a long-term lease to the football club. This will enable a football operation to be run from the Stadium, with the facilities being made available exclusively to the Club on match days, but at other times to also be operated as an active community sports facility. This was fundamental to the Council making an offer of funding to support the works needed to adapt and develop the Stadium. We also believe this is best possible way to attract additional external investment into the stadium and deliver the objectives of the Community Ownership Fund.
    It is therefore imperative that all partners work together to put a long-term lease in place for the football club, develop a community use and engagement plan, and begin the work of drawing in external funding.‘
    We hope this provides some useful clarification. The funding is 'dependent on the issuing of a long-term lease to the football club' amongst other terms which we need to agree with them.
    FAQ on Risks
    We have also been asked what are the key risks to the project and what are the mitigants. We have already undertaken an assessment of these and have copied them below.
    Key Risks
    1.       Delay in funding delays installation
    Probability: High Impact: High
    If we are unable to complete the order with the supplier by March we cannot install the pitch during the summer, will have missed the opportunity the apply to the Football Foundation for funding the following summer, and we assume we will lose the remaining £300, 000 from the Community Ownership Fund. We will also have missed the window for booking in suppliers for remediation work to the grass pitch and may struggle to complete the season as the current grass pitch is in a poor condition and requires considerable work. The requisite funds are available but there is a process to access these in time and Bury Council have no precedent for this so it is unclear. We also need to put the lease in place to access the Bury Council funding and this is awaiting a decision from DLUHC.
    Mitigation: Secure and agree funding terms from DHLUC and Bury Council by end February.
    2.       Pitch is not correctly installed and is unusable
    Probability: Medium Impact: High
    This would cause increased costs and potentially an inability to complete fixtures.
    Mitigation: We will ask the league to arrange away fixtures at the start of the season to allow more time should there be any minor delays. We have sourced an experienced supplier who can manage the whole process, rather than attempting to save cost with a higher risk supplier. The supplier has numerous reference sites, and we have spoken to Reading Football Club and Burton Albion who spoke highly of their work. They are based in Oxfordshire but have a representative local to Bury.
    3.       Pitch is not used by the community
    Probability: Low Impact: Medium
    If the pitch is used by the club but there is a lack of demand for use it will fail to meet its community objectives. With no Football Foundation funding there are no grant funding metrics we would need to adhere to but we expect Bury Council to want to see community benefit evidence for their funding.
    Mitigation: We have already researched demand for a 3G pitch in the area and it is high due to a lack of available pitches. There is a large deficit in the Bury Council area of 3G pitches based upon the Football Foundation and FA Football Facility Plan and Bury Council’s own Sports Facility Strategy. The future development of more 3G surfaces in the borough is unlikely to reduce this demand significantly and the stadium’s local status will undoubtedly give it a competitive edge over other facilities. Employing a community officer will ensure that the facilities are used by people who Bury Council wish to target for better health and may not be attracted to the stadium or football.
    4.       Income is short of expectation
    Probability: Low Impact: Low
    The revenues forecast are lower than we expect either through less usage or a need to reduce hire charges.
    Mitigation: We have already tested the rental charges and they are competitive when compared to other surfaces. We could increase costs and still attract a high level of usage. The combination of club and stadium has been trading at a profit without the new surface. We expect the community officer to create programmes that will be funded either through user ‘subs’ or through funded programmes, reducing the reliance on standard rental fees. Whilst lower revenues would reduce the ability to invest further it would not alter the financial viability of the club or stadium.  We could reduce the reliance on hourly rental fees and look to share the ground with another football club.
    5.       Pitch needs to be replaced faster than expected
    Probability: Medium Impact: Medium
    The pitch is no longer suitable for senior men’s football as it degrades faster than expected and fails league certification, or is considered unacceptable for some other reason.
    Mitigation: We have opted for a substructure which will perform better over time and be cheaper to replace when required. We will adopt a limit on usage similar to that used by the Football Foundation. We will use a sinking fund to provision for a replacement over time and aim to build this to around £320, 000. We have experience of ground-sharing which means that if critical repair work was required mid-season we could change stadium temporarily.

    • Dean
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