07/8/09

Lewes kick-off the new season in Blue Square South against Weymouth tomorrow with a mixture of excitement and trepidation.

On the pitch, Steve Ibbitson and Jason Hopkinson have put together a fine squad which is raring to go.

Many of last season’s team have agreed to stay at the club, despite offers of more money elsewhere, and have thus shown the sort of loyalty that many claim is missing in football nowadays.

The squad has been bolstered by a number of new signings who have worked hard during a pre-season which has seen the Rooks unbeaten in five friendly fixtures.
 

Weymouth

With thoughts turning to Saturday’s game, both Ibbitson, and his Weymouth counterpart Matty Hale share their suspicions about their opponents.

Ibbitson told the Sussex Express: “They have got themselves a completely new squad from what I can see, so they’re going to be a little bit of an unknown quantity. We’ve got to take them very seriously.”

The Terras do have a new look about them from the side that lost 1-0 at the Dripping Pan last April.

Hale told www.theterras.co.uk: “Pre-season was different for us than most other clubs. We didn’t have any players, we had to spend a little time looking at trialists and young lads, but overall, I’m happy how it’s gone.” "

With regards to the Rooks, Hale said “They're full of energy, they've got a young side, they'll be fit, and obviously first game at home they'll want to go all out to try and get a good start in front of their own crowd. I don't expect it to be easy, but it's certainly a game that we can go and get something from."

Fears

However, with the excitement and anticipation of the new season that Lewes supporters share with every other set of fans across the country, things off the pitch aren’t looking so rosy.

With a winding up order from HMRC due to be heard in less than four weeks, many fans fear that this could be the last pre-season that the Rooks see in their current form.

Owner Martin Elliott is working hard behind the scenes to negotiate a repayment package which will be acceptable to the HMRC, despite one already being agreed earlier in the season.

Elliott told the Sussex Express today “We have always been in touch with them from the moment we started to fall into arrears. We want to repay this debt.”

“In May we received a letter from the Southampton Office saying that they would in principle give us ten, eleven months to repay.”

“In the meantime, we got transferred to the Worthing office who early in June said that they were going to wind us up.”

Elliott has ensured that the club are up to date with payments in the current financial year, which has been welcomed by the HMRC, and this week has been continuing discussions with them about a repayment structure.

Feel Good

With the appointment of Ibbitson as caretaker manager in March, some of the feel-good factor began to return to the club from the terraces.

Although he was powerless to prevent the rapid slide from the BS Premier into the BS South, it was Ibbitson who managed to halt a sixteen game run of defeats with a victory against Altrincham at the Dripping Pan last April, the first league win since early December.

Ibbitson has been instrumental behind the scenes since then, taking on the manager’s role permanently alongside his Under 18 management colleague Jason Hopkinson, and working hard within the fledgling management committee of volunteers who are trying to aid the everyday running of the club.

The committee have no magic wand but through hard work and goodwill are slowly coming to grips with some of the difficulties that the club is facing.

Supporters

One thing that is clear however is that the supporters have a major part to play in the future of the Rooks. In his programme notes for tomorrow’s match, Ibbitson says that the fans have to “decide whether they want a football club in Lewes, and we need their help to keep things going.”

The management committee are not a closed shop, and are certainly open to offers of help and expertise from supporters where they feel that they can help make a difference.

The weeks ahead are going to be difficult, but we’re in it together and we all need to pull together to bring back the smiles and camaraderie to the Dripping Pan, starting tomorrow against Weymouth.

Up the Rooks!

James Boyes