So, we might be in June and supposedly in the close season, but does the season ever really end?
With the World Cup happening over the course of the next two months you could argue not from a player’s perspective. From a manager’s standpoint, does the phone stop ringing? Not if you’re looking for the next signing to bolster a threadbare squad to ensure the team competes at the right end of the table.
Supporters, whilst not able to watch their own side in action, can settle for armchair viewing with the international action and from some of the less viewed foreign leagues who play through the summer.
But what about those volunteers as you move further down the football pyramid? The groundsman, secretary, committee members, social media editors, amongst others beavering away in preparation for the new season having probably only just put things to rest on the ending season.
The pitch doesn’t repair itself and takes hours of work from those committee members and helpers to seed, water, cut and strim to make it look in the best possible condition ready for the August kick off.
Secretaries busy arranging and confirming pre-season friendlies, readying themselves for player registrations from July 1st, ensuring league affiliations are completed to avoid fines and that’s just the tip of the iceberg!
Committee members will have their own roles, from trying to get new sponsorship into the club to keeping the clubhouse open and running and chipping in to repair bits and pieces around the grounds and stadiums.
Social media and websites work 12 months of the year, supporters and followers eager to hear of anything related to their club across the main website, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram feeds, any news is news they want to read and sometimes before they hear of it through mainline streams and information services.
This is by no means an exclusive list, there is far more going on at your local club than you would ever imagine and most don’t get paid for what they do, it’s a love of the game and a love of their club, but also your club.
Not that you will find them complaining about any of it, or not often, but football is very much a 12-month season for some and many, and if there is a line where one ends and the next begins, it’s not very clear anymore!
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