Linnets manager Calum McIntyre and his assistant Colin Woodthorpe will toast the club’s travelling fans at Workington tomorrow by buying them all a drink.
It’s in appreciation of the club’s loyal away following and the managerial duo are to stand a round at Borough Park as this is the longest trip of the season in the Pitching In Northern Premier League West Division.
Win, lose or draw, each and every Linnets fan present will be offered a pint of beer, lager or cider, a soft drink or a single spirit courtesy of Calum and Colin – as a thank you for their commitment to the Linnets cause and backing for the players.
McIntyre told the club website: “The management team have been stunned by the immense support we have received from our fans during the start of this season.
“Much has been made of our home attendances, but we have seen significant travelling support at all our away fixtures this season.
“Our players are hugely appreciative of this, as are our staff and we wanted to let our supporters know how appreciative we are of the way they get behind us.
“We will be putting our hands in our pockets on Saturday to ensure that every single Linnets supporter that makes the journey to Workington to support the lads can have a drink on us.”
Club chairman Dave Jones said: “This a great gesture from Calum and Colin and shows the relationship they have developed with our fans.
“Fans have been attending home games in great numbers and even though this is a long trip, we know our faithful fans will follow us where ever we go.
“This is a wonderful way for Calum and Colin to thank our fans for their amazing support this season and I thank them, on the club’s behalf, for this great gesture.”
Runcorn Linnets fans will be able to obtain their drink voucher on entry to the ground.
This can be exchanged for a pint, soft drink or short in the Tony Hopper Bar (Workington AFC’s social club) before, during or after the match.
Reds boss Chris Willcock watched Runcorn Linnets beat Newcastle Town 2-0 10 days ago and they are on a very good run of form, previously having won 5-1 at Tadcaster in the FA Trophy.
Chairman Dave Jones said: “We now have 117 season ticket holders and are averaging just under 600 for home games.
“I do expect this to level off when we enter the colder months but our original aim was to increase our average season attendance to over 400, so we are well on track to achieving that.
“One of the most pleasing aspects of the increase in attendances is the number of youngsters we’ve had attending our games this season.
“I’ve long looked on enviously when I’ve seen the number of young people attending games at other club’s stadiums.
“The club has been attempting to attract the next generation of fans for a long time now and I’m delighted that we appear to have cracked it, although no one will be resting on their laurels.
There are many factors that have led to this increase but the main factor is the improvement in our relationship with the Junior Section as the support of their executive committee has been vital in us attracting and retaining younger fans.
“We will still be looking to roll out other initiatives to increase attendances and will of course be looking at ground improvements to make sure everyone who attends has the best match day experience possible.”
The Linnets have climbed to seventh in the table and as an indication of how congested it is towards the top they are only six points behind the Reds and with three games in hand.
Reds are currently in their poorest run of the season with a defeat and draw in the League; an FA Trophy defeat and an extra-time County Cup win making up their last four games.
It’s the first blip of Willcock’s reign but he will be hoping to get back to winning ways tomorrow as more of his injured players become available to play.
