Firstly, our staff and players would like to send our best wishes to all of our supporters and sponsors during the current lockdown situation. Particularly the club would like to acknowledge the number of our players, supporters and staff who have volunteered their time to contribute to community causes and charitable fundraising efforts for the NHS and other extremely worthy causes. Our Supporters’ Trust made a very generous contribution to a local charity in need recently and so many supporters and staff are making an effort to look out for their neighbours and vulnerable members of our communities. We’re proud of you.
Always mindful of the priorities we all have to focus on currently – protecting the NHS by adhering to lock down measures, social distancing policies, and placing everyone’s health and safety first – we still need to address matters at hand such as today’s confirmation by the National League that the remaining 2019/20 season league matches have been cancelled.
The League will now proceed to the next stage of decision-making which will see them further canvass clubs in the North and South divisions, and then National League, in order to determine what options or alternatives will be tabled to conclude the season in terms of final placings and any promotion or relegation that may occur. In terms of the outcome for Ebbsfleet United FC, we have placed on record our views to the National League and will continue to work hard on behalf of our supporters, staff and players to ensure a common sense approach is taken to provide the most fair and reasonable outcome for all clubs.
Importantly as it stands today, the decision means that unfortunately our squad of 2019/20 will not have the chance to play together for you again as a squad. The effort and work put in by players and staff to see the season end as one of the form teams with a huge amount of momentum must be acknowledged.
Now that a formal decision has been reached on the end of the season, the club is working on a retention and recruitment programme for the next month and inevitably there will be player movement in and out of the club. In the absence of final home matches during these extraordinary circumstances, we are sure you will all join us in thanking the squad for their efforts in what will be remembered as an unprecedented and surreal season of football.
In addition to the difficult end to the season for the staff and players today’s cancellation has delivered, we are also very aware that our most important part of the club – our supporters and sponsors – will also not be able to receive the full and expected benefits for their season tickets and sponsorship packages for season 2019/20 with four home matches having been cancelled.
We appreciate your consideration, support and patience around this matter and we plan to address this when finalising and launching the new campaign’s season ticket and sponsorship packages, when we hope to include additional benefits for 201920 season-ticket holders and sponsors. Please keep your current season-ticket card. If you have a specific request, issue or need around your season ticket or sponsorship, please contact us on info@eufc.co.uk for a discussion.
One of the disappointing aspects around the season ending on this note is that the momentum and spirit that was building throughout the club on and off the pitch in recent months wasn’t able to be carried through to its natural conclusion on the final day of the season and springboard us into preparations for 2020/21.
That said, we have witnessed and experienced a totally unexpected but equally inspiring set of circumstances that has seen our club come together and demonstrate positivity and community spirit. That is something to be immensely proud of.
Keep it up – and when the time for football and new season preparations comes around again soon, we must ensure we don’t waste the good work and momentum we have built and so advance together.
