WEEKLY BULLETIN – 17TH JUNE
TICKETS FOR LUTON AND STEVENAGE
Tickets for our upcoming friendlies with Luton and Stevenage went on sale today Friday 17th June at 10.00am. Demand is expected to be high for both games. We play Luton on Friday 1st July kick-off 7.00pm and Stevenage on Tuesday 5th July kick-off 7.00am.
Please remember the only way to gain entry to these two games is by buying your ticket online via our ticketing site. Prices are adults £13, concessions £8, teenagers £3 and children under 13 £I with over 80’s free.
SEASON TICKETS
Please remember that if you purchase a season ticket it will entitle you to free entry for all our friendlies as well as all home league games. The first print run of season tickets is taking place early next week and if you buy one in the next couple of days you will be included in this print run and will receive your ticket by post before the Luton game. In any case season tickets can be collected at the Luton game if necessary.
MAINTENANCE MORNING
The next working party at Top Field will be tomorrow (on Saturday 18th June) 9.00am to 12.00pm. All volunteers will be most welcome as plenty of jobs remain to be done before the Luton game. Don’t be shy—you will be made very welcome and refreshments will be provided!
A MESSSAGE FROM CANARY KITCHEN
Our summer opening days and hours have temporarily changed to help our event side of the business at its booked festivals and sporting events.
We will be open…
❇️Thursday 10am – 2pm & 5pm – 9pm
❇️Friday 10am – 2pm & 5pm – 9.30pm
❇️Saturday 9am – 2pm & 5pm – 9.30pm
Plus any booked events such as all the football games at Hitchin Town FC and for any booked buffets in the Canary Club!
We hope everyone enjoys their summer and see you all Thursdays to Saturdays for a burger, breakfast wrap or a coffee.
CONTRACTS SIGNED
We are pleased to announce that Charlie Horlock has renewed his contract for the coming season. Charlie remains one of the best goalkeepers in the Southern League and it is great news for our supporters that he is staying at Top Field.
There is further good news as Stan Georgiou has signed his first contract for Hitchin. Stan stepped up from the academy team and had a really impressive debut season and he will only continue to improve as he gains more experience.
PRE SEASON NEWS BY MICHAEL JONES
On Monday 13th June we held our first open training session as we continued our recruitment for the new season.
We also opened the session up to current first team players who wanted to have an extra session before the start of pre-season.
The triallists all met before the start of the session for a brief chat to explain the next steps moving forward. Then we went onto the pitch and after a short warm up we played some small sided games to have a good look at everyone. We have invited players back for further sessions so we can have a better look and make better judgements on each player as we plan to have one more training session and then a full size training match.
ACADEMY UPDATE
On Tuesday 14th June we had some of our academy players play in the Pro:Direct showcase event. This event was held in front of scouts from all clubs and allowed players to show what they could offer. We have had a lot of great feedback from the event and have had some professional clubs show interest in our players.
CIDER AND CHEESE FESTIVAL BY MICK DOCKING
2018 seems a long while ago. There has certainly been lots going on in the interim – mostly bad I am afraid. But one positive thing back then was the absolute determination of a certain Alan Clark that a Cider and Cheese Festival was a goer. Others (me for example) were less convinced, but happily I have been proven wrong and in just a fortnight our 3rd Cider Festival kicks off at the Canary Club.
Back then the committee consisted of Alan, me, Colin Ridgway, Len Leroux, Kate Deller and Ian Murrell. This year its just Alan, Kate and myself, but despite that everything seems to be on track. Throughout these years our sponsors and friends from IDNet have been invaluable, providing both financial support and stacks of enthusiasm,
The first year we enlisted as cheese supplier, Wobbly Bottom Farm and they did a sound job, but turning to Little Deli the following year proved a great move and we are so pleased that Louise and Ben seem to enjoy the working relationship.
So that has set the scene for the 2022 Festival, which rather inconveniently falls on the same day as our Luton friendly. That we cannot alter and we just hope that one will not detract from the other. Parking is going to be problematic, so we would encourage visitors to either of these events on 1st July to consider getting a lift or walking.
So there you are – over 30 different “real” ciders on show from all over the UK. A great selection of cheeses to soak up the cider and free live music on both the Friday and Saturday nights. The Sandy Ukulele Group, Glee Choir, Bad Bones and Hot Tub Steps are all featured over the weekend.
Our usual selection of real ales is supplemented by a guest ale from Garden City Brewery.
Admission is free, but cider purchases can only be made by using a voucher system favoured by beer festivals.
My final thanks to our many sponsors. They have offset many of the costs otherwise arising and should ensure a healthy profit.
BY ROY IZZARD