Posted on 30th June 2010
This is a story from the FSF archive – the FSF and SD merged to become the FSA in 2019.
Since 2002, clubs owned by their supporters’ trust have been invited to play in the annual Supporters Direct Cup. This year will also be the first time the new Supporters Direct Shield will be competed for, allowing two more clubs to take part in the fun but traditionally highly competitive day.
Both matches will be played at AFC Telford United’s impressive New Bucks Head ground, with Telford playing one-time winners FC United of Manchester for The Supporters Direct Cup, whilst the new SD Shield will see recently reborn Merthyr Town go head-to-head against Scarborough Athletic.
As with last year’s SD Cup match, there’s a twist in the tail as supporters coming through the gates will have the chance to enter a raffle with a unique prize – the chance to win the trophy for their club in a fans’ penalty shoot-out.
“The SD Cup is always a special day. You see real camaraderie between the different clubs and their fans, and this year that counts double. For us as an organisation representing the wider trust movement, we’re immensely proud of all the fans of these clubs and what they’ve achieved,” said Supporters Direct’s Kevin Rye.
“I’m really excited to be welcoming all of them to the competition especially Merthyr Town who, despite being in exile like Scarborough Athletic, have refused to go quietly and are proudly continuing the tradition of football for their town.”
Fans from all clubs are welcome on the day which takes place at AFC Telford United (Watling Street, TF1 2TU) on Saturday July 24th. Tickets will be sold on the gate on the day and are priced at £8 adults, £5 concessions and unaccompanied under 16’s, or £1 for under 16’s accompanied by an adult.
If the scores are level at full-time in either fixture a penalty shoot-out will decide the match. The penalty takers will be decided by a raffle (tickets sold on the gate) which will be drawn at half-time of the first match. Five fans from each club will be drawn to take a penalty, which will operate in the normal way.
Kick off times:
More details can be found on the Supporters Direct website.
The Football Supporters’ Federation on Facebook.
Our friends at Pledgeball are rallying fans to show support for their national team by making pro-environmental pledges during the Women’s Euros – and the Pledgeball League champion will be the nation whose fans commit to saving the most carbon emissions.
On Saturday, the FSA took part in a double-header of games in Manchester and the south east that took place to promote our community-owned clubs and the women’s game.
The Brian Lomax Cup takes place every pre-season and celebrates the role of supporter-owned football clubs. The trophy is named after the founding father of the supporters’ trust movement, who sadly passed away in 2015.
The Brian Lomax Cup and Supporters Direct Shield take place each pre-season, with the two trophies providing an opportunity to celebrate community ownership by bringing together supporter-owned clubs from different parts of the country to compete for some pre-season silverware.
