Communities Cup: Post-Match Debrief
Firstly, the club would like to thank both sets of supporters for creating a vibrant, positive atmosphere at yesterday’s Communities Cup match. This is what football should be about and we are looking forward to further contests in the future against our rivals. Many guests on Saturday, including some from countries further afield, were extremely complimentary about the day and the club’s hospitality.
Now the dust has settled, the club would like to address a few points raised by supporters:
Renfrewshire / Communities Cup:
When the match was organised several weeks ago, our aim was to resume the storied Renfrewshire Cup and bring the annual tradition back to the fixture calendar. Despite the club’s best efforts, we were unable to get the necessary stakeholders on side to use the previous trophy and competition name.
The alternative plan was to use the title “Communities Cup” as a celebration of community ownership in Scottish football. Our match sponsors were Specsavers’ Paisley and Greenock branch and we would like to thank them for their support over the last few weeks.
TonTV Stream:
Despite a hugely successful afternoon at Cappielow, the club was disappointed not to be able to offer a reliable streaming service. All supporters will be refunded in due course and ask for some patience as we go through the process this week.
Regarding the digital infrastructure of the stadium, this is not a new challenge for the club. Given the age of Cappielow, it’s an annual challenge – and cost – to bring the infrastructure up to the required standard for 2023. The board have already started the process to make improvements and we will do our best to avoid this happening again.
We apologise for the inconvenience.
Cash turnstiles & Trophy presentation:
We share the frustration of supporters, who paid good money and were unable to see a trophy presentation. This was a decision taken out of the club’s control on the basis of safety. Given the game passed off without issues due to the exemplary behaviour of both sets of fans, we hope this is a decision that will be reconsidered in the future.
The trophy was awarded to club captain Grant Gillespie in hospitality with our sponsors present.
The same frustrations are shared at closing cash turnstiles half an hour before kick-off. That many supporters would not see this on social media was communicated on the club’s behalf. The club and staff therefore took every measure to overcome this challenge, including using our retail partner Smiths, posting reminders on club comms and QR codes placed around Sinclair Street.
Again, we encourage a rethink of this decision in the future.
New turnstiles:
A good news story was the first attempt to use our new turnstiles. Compared to the issues last season, fans were able to enter the ground in good time and with practically no queues up until 3pm. The club is delighted with the support of our digital ticketing partner Fanbase and encourage fans to make use of the app. We are aiming for automatic turnstiles to be fully operational for the League Cup match against Stranraer. These test events will serve us in good stead before the cinch Championship season starts in August.
Match Volunteers:
Finally, and most importantly, the club extends its appreciation to our dedicated team of match volunteers. Everyone involved makes a huge contribution to the matchday experience and we are grateful for that support. This is the essence of community ownership and we would be delighted to welcome anyone else forward who wishes to lend support in any area.
