Lewes welcome fans' return - but warn of massive headaches

Lewes FC bosses have welcomed news fans can return to The Dripping Pan – but have warned: Headaches remain.
The gates at the Pan will be open to fans again soonThe gates at the Pan will be open to fans again soon
The gates at the Pan will be open to fans again soon

Clubs at the Rooks’ level – step three of the non-league game – can admit fans from tomorrow, with a crowd of 300 allowed at first, rising to 600 in September.

But chairman Stuart Fuller said although the news was welcome and overdue, it still presented Lewes and many other clubs with headaches over how Covid-19 protocols could be safely met.

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Lewes’ only remaining scheduled home friendly is against Tonbridge Angels at 3pm tomorrow but Fuller said that was too soon for them to allow fans in.

But he said they hoped to arrange a further home fixture, probably for Saturday, September 12, when they could test hosting a crowd before league and cup matches began.

He also stressed that although the rules said they could welcome 600 at their level in September, The Dripping Pan was an example of a ground where that many people could not - at present - be safely accommodated.

Another anomaly is that Lewes Women, because they play in the second tier of women’s football, are ‘elite’ and still not permitted any fans – so they could be playing Women’s National League Championship games behind closed doors AFTER the men’s side have started playing with fans present.

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Fuller told us: “This week’s news is a relief because, to quote Jock Stein, football without fans is nothing. But it’s a massive headache for every club. The onus is on us to provide a safe environment and it will be easy to point fingers if things go wrong anywhere.

“A lot of volunteers, here and at all clubs, are giving up a lot of time to make this work. We’ve written a risk assessment and are looking at exactly how we can accommodate fans. There’s lot of areas we need to adapt.”

Fuller said he hoped most fans would buy season tickets so the club knew who was coming game by game and said he hoped supporters appreciated the work being put in.

“The non-league experience will be completely different for the foreseeable, that is for sure,” he added. “And some won’t like it!”