The season's over and the players have started their close-season break, so the Abbey Stadium can now go into mothballs until the first pre-season friendly in July - right? Wrong! Summer is actually one of the busiest times of the year for many people at the Club.

The most obvious sign of summer activity is at the south end of the ground, where the redevelopment is moving on apace.

Elsewhere in the stadium, the pitch is being re-levelled and re-seeded to ensure that the surface is in perfect condition for the start of the new campaign, while the break from matches gives the groundstaff the ideal opportunity to give sections of the stadium a much-needed lick of paint. Additionally, there are numerous general maintenance and safety tasks to ensure that we are allowed to admit the paying public next season.

The flood of season ticket application forms handed out at the last home match of the season has been added to, with existing season ticket holders invited to renew for the coming campaign. The Administration staff deal with the completed forms as they come in and the steady stream builds to a flood as June 8th, the cut off date for 'early purchase discount' prices, approaches.

When the forms arrive they are entered on a database and, in the case of seats, also hand-written onto a master plan of who's sitting where. Application forms are checked to ensure that existing season ticket holders' seats are not sold to anyone else until they have had until noon on June 8th to renew. The master plan of seats is usually rewritten - by hand - at least twice as the ticket office staff check, double check and triple check that supporters have been allocated the correct seats. Only then can the season ticket booklets be posted out.

Since the financial year-end of Cambridge United FC is May 31st, those same staff are also working extra hard on the Club's accounts and all the associated tasks that go with a company year-end. With no matches to deal with, staff now have the opportunity to catch up on the inevitable backlog of paperwork and wade their way through the mountain of requests for information from students looking for information for their theses.

A lack of matches certainly does not mean a lack of activity in the Commercial Department. As soon as the fixtures come out in mid-June they will be striving to sell match and matchball sponsorship before a ball is kicked. Player sponsorship is sold once John Taylor provides the definitive list, perimeter boards have to be sold and other sponsorship avenues explored. Desk planners and programme advertising are also sold - all before the start of the season.

The Commercial Department are also currently putting the finishing touches to the golf tournament that will be held on July 17th, and they are planning for the November 13th sporting dinner. After the success of the last event, they are looking for a venue that can accommodate over 200 people.

Having negotiated a new deal with a manufacturer, the Commercial Department organises all the players' training and playing kit for next season and also controls the stock for the Club Shop.

Over the summer period, the Catering Department will be hosting, on average, a couple of functions a week - and looking to sell more.

Various lunches and parties will take place in the Harris Suite and Ruston Room over the summer, including a Sports Aid lunch held by Bidwells on the day England play Argentina.

The under-19s may have gone home for the summer but life in the Youth Development Department becomes hectic as they are either looking after the travel arrangements for various tours or on tour with the boys themselves. This summer, boys from the under-10s to under-17s will be representing the Club in Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, the Netherlands and Switzerland. With so many tours going ahead this summer, Youth Development Officer Dan Ashworth has scheduled just two weekends at home.

The tours, which are largely funded by the boys' parents, are important in the boys' development as players and people, and are a vital step in the ongoing selection process of Cambridge United stars of the future.

The Football in the Community staff are now approaching their busiest time with the June half term courses closely followed by a very hectic summer programme.

Six weeks is a long time to entertain children, especially when the weather is perfect for football. With the World Cup being a major topic of conversation during the coming weeks, a football in the community summer course is an ideal way for the children to let off steam and practise all the skills seen during the world cup, as well as learn some new ones.

The summer courses take place over five days from 10am to 3pm and include numerous skills and exercises as well as the chance to compete in small sided and individual competitions. The competitions aside, the emphasis is on having fun irrespective of winning. Details of the summer programme will be appearing on the web site at the beginning of June, however if you require further information please do not hesitate to contact community officer Mark Nutter on 01223 416238.

On the PR front, some activity actually increases during the close-season, including Club involvement in local clubs' end of season presentation evenings, support of local schools, charities and worthy causes that are staging Summer Fetes and Fun Days. In addition this year there are many World Cup inspired opportunities.

It is also time for PR Manager Graham Eales to follow up much admininstration work which gets squeezed out during the season, as well as reviewing the past season's PR principles, practice and priorities in preparation for the season ahead. Many of the PR back-up roles are voluntary so now is the time to recruit help from volunteers with skills/interest in media, PR, photography, video and IT. Frequently, these roles are filled by 6th Form students who help the Club, but also receive practical hands-on experience relevant to their career choice in this mutually beneficial arrangement.

During this period, in the absence of the Match Day focal point, and the weekly Media Call, there are reports about Club developments on the website, in the news and on the radio, all aimed at enhancing the Club profile.

In between all of the above, most staff will try to fit in a summer holiday. So, as you can appreciate, the Abbey Stadium and its staff are far from mothballed during the break between seasons!

So what do you think? Why not log onto the Message Board to share your views?

Previous Main Features:
02May02- Family Day A Huge Success
21Apr02 - Fans Groups Call For Direct Action
06Apr02 - League Chairman Thanks Fans For Support
30Mar02 - ITV Digital - Crowd Statistics & Viewing Figures
24Mar02 - LDV Vans Trophy Final Photo Feature
17Mar02 - Follow The U's To Cardiff!
10Mar02 - Away Day Blues
03Mar02 - The Best Of The Best?
24Feb02 - The Future of Football?
17Feb02 - U's Fans On Sky TV's Soccer AM
10Feb02 - U's Fans Feature On ITV Digital Quiz
02Feb02 - A Week In The Life of PR Manager Graham Eales
20Jan02  - U's Players Get Darth Vader Treatment
13Jan02  - Kit Carson Explains His 'Head of Talent Development' Role
05Jan02  - Dale Brooks Enjoying New Role
04Dec01 - U's Players Try Out Premiership Physio Machine
10Nov01 - U's Launch New Away Kit

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