Harrogate Town: What to look out for in the new season

Harrogate Town will be looking forward to focusing on football after what has been a difficult summer off the pitch.

With concerns over fan safety at Wetherby Road seemingly concluded, Simon Weaver’s men host Rochdale AFC tomorrow afternoon in what will be many supporters’ first chance to watch Town play league football in the flesh.

The club finished last season in 17th, which was their first-ever campaign in League Two, and the bookmakers are predicting them to finish in the same position this season.

But tempting odds of 7/1 to gain promotion reflects the unpredictability of the division and fans will expect the team to steer well clear of the relegation positions.

New signings

Last season’s new signings were more miss than hit and Weaver will be hoping more of his new arrivals can make an impact during this campaign.

Town averaged just over a goal a game last season and striker Luke Armstrong has joined from Salford to complement Aaron Martin and offer a more clinical goal threat. Armstrong spent last season on loan at Hartlepool in the National League, scoring a commendable 13 goals in 28 appearances, which included a goal at Wembley in their play-off final that saw them promoted.

Talismanic forward Jack Muldoon has been handed a new contract but fringe strikers Jon Stead and Mark Beck have left the club, retiring and joining York City on loan respectively.

Seven new signings have joined the squad so far, including the highly-rated Lewis Page who is West Ham United academy graduate.

The new signings are:

Mark Oxley (goalkeeper), Rory McArdle (defender), Luke Armstrong (striker), Danilo Orsi (striker), Alex Pattison (midfielder), Lewis Page (defender), Nathan Sheron (midfielder).

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Number 1

Manager Simon Weaver has shown a ruthlessness as he begins to dismantle the core of his squad that saw them rise up from the National League North.

Many Town fans were surprised when popular goalkeeper James Belshaw left the club to join Bristol Rovers who play in the same division.

He’s been replaced with Mark Oxley, an experienced stopper who’s played in the EFL for Southend United. However, he had a debut to forget in a pre-season friendly against Rotherham, which led some fans to cast envious glances towards what they’ve lost in Bristol.

The twelfth man

Town fans were of course robbed of the experience of visiting Wembley stadium for the National League play-off final, which coincidentally was a year ago this weekend.

They then had to contend with watching the majority of the season on laptop screens and mobile phones via the EFL’s streaming service while coronavirus restrictions continued.

The club have announced they have already sold a record amount of season tickets for the new season — and thousands of fans cheering on the team each week should make a difference to the club’s home form, after a season of empty stands.

Details of Town’s 46 league games are available to view here.

Delight for fans as Harrogate Town allowed spectators on Saturday

Harrogate Town have been given the all clear to allow home and away fans into the ground for the opening match of the season against Rochdale on Saturday.

The announcement will come as a relief to supporters of both clubs as speculation mounted that the game would be played behind closed doors.

This was after North Yorkshire County Council identified 17 “unacceptable risks” at the club’s EnviroVent Stadium, including issues with the CCTV system, control room, and stewarding.

It appears the issues have now been resolved after the club issued a statement this afternoon saying it had now been given permission to sell tickets by the council’s safety advisory group, which has the final say on whether supporters can attend.

Visiting Rochdale supporters will be housed in the Myrings stand and EnviroVent seated terrace.

The club also apologised to both sets of fans for the uncertainty.

“We would like to thank our supporters for their patience at this difficult time and to those who have sent positive messages of support.

“We would like to apologise to both our supporters and Rochdale supporters for the delay in confirming arrangements at Saturday’s fixture and the subsequent inconvenience this has caused.

“It has been a difficult process but the safety of everyone at the stadium is paramount and cannot be compromised.”

Tickets for the game, as well as a Carabao Cup fixture on August 10, also against Rochdale, are available to purchase here. No tickets will be sold at the turnstiles.

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Rochdale fans frustrated by ‘embarrassing’ ticket situation at Harrogate Town

With fans still in the dark about whether they will be allowed to attend Harrogate Town‘s opening match of the season, supporters of opponents Rochdale have given a damning assessment of the situation.

Town’s League Two campaign is set to kick off on Saturday at the EnviroVent Stadium on Wetherby Road against the Lancashire club.

There’s about 72 hours to go and it’s still unclear whether fans will be allowed inside the ground after North Yorkshire County Council identified 17 “unacceptable risks” at the stadium, including issues with the CCTV system, control room, and stewarding.

The council’s refusal to issue a safety certificate meant fans were unable to attend the friendly against Sunderland on July 24. Home fans were permitted to watch the final pre-season friendly against Doncaster Rovers on Sunday but no away fans were let in.

No tickets are on sale yet for this weekend’s Rochdale match. A club spokesperson told the Stray Ferret last night it was working “tirelessly and vigorously” behind the scenes to resolve the situation.

But the uncertainty so close to kick off has frustrated Rochdale fans who are unsure whether to plan to make the trip across the Pennines.

Josh Dolan told the Stray Ferret he hoped to take his 18-month old daughter to her first game.

Mr Dolan said the English Football League should intervene and questioned whether Town’s off-the-field operation is set up for the rigours of the professional game. He said:

“How can the EFL not get involved because if this was any other team, like Barrow, Rochdale or Oldham they’d be on us like a ton of bricks? It makes me think are they even ready for the football league? It’s embarrassing for your club really”.

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Mr Dolan said Harrogate Town should have communicated the situation better to supporters:

“I would like to say let the fans know in advance due to people that have booked hotels and travel. In a nutshell, they need to liaise with the fans instead of keeping them in the dark”.

Another Rochdale fan, Nathaniel McNulty, is also looking forward to visiting Harrogate for the first time.

He said:

[It’s a] new ground for many, if not all of us, and I was going to make a day of it. I’d not bought tickets for the train just yet, but, like many other Dale fans, I think this is where my frustrations lie. I just want to get it booked and organised for the first game of the season.”

He said he understood that safety concerns needed to be addressed and was skeptical about fans being allowed in.

“It almost feels like delaying the inevitable.”

Football ground safety expert: Harrogate Town situation could damage reputation of club

An expert on safety at football grounds believes the current situation at Harrogate Town could damage the reputation of the club if fans are unable to buy tickets to the season opener on Saturday due to safety concerns at the EnviroVent Stadium.

With less than four days until kick-off, frustrated Town fans are in the dark about whether they can attend the League Two opener on Saturday afternoon against Rochdale AFC.

It’s the same for Rochdale supporters who have taken to social media to criticise Harrogate Town with some saying they have bought train tickets and booked hotels.

Playing the game in front of an empty ground would be a major embarrassment for the Wetherby Road club who will shortly begin their second-ever season in the English Football League.

“Unacceptable risks”

North Yorkshire County Council banned fans from attending a friendly against Sunderland on July 24 after identifying 17 “unacceptable risks” for fan safety at the club’s EnviroVent Stadium on Wetherby Road. These included problems with the CCTV system, the ground’s control room and stewarding.

It’s unclear if these issues can be overcome in time for Saturday’s kick-off.

Martin O’Hara, national council member for the Football Supporter’s Association and chair of the South Yorkshire Police Independent Advisory Group that is responsible for ground safety, told the Stray Ferret that if NYCC bans fans from attending it would damage the reputation of the club.

He added:

“It is very unusual that a club wouldn’t be allowed to open it’s gates at the start of the season.”

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Mr O’Hara said there are “generally workarounds” for safety problems at grounds but it remains to be seen if expensive and complex systems such as CCTV can be rectified in time.

He also said the uncertainty raises questions about the status of the hundreds of season tickets that have been sold.

Mr O’Hara added:

“I would expect there to be a lot going on behind the scenes with the Safety Advisory Group (SAG) at the council, the local police and the club”.

What needs to happen?

The safety standards at football grounds are set by the government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport.

These are included in a document called “The Green Guide” that has been written by regulator the Sports Ground Safety Authority (SGSA).

The SGSA issues guidance to council SAGs and has its own inspectors who work with them. Before each fixture, the local authority issues a safety certificate and enforces the safety standards.

Harrogate Town released the following statement this afternoon:

“The club are continuing to work with the Safety Advisory Group and Sports Ground Safety Authority to ensure supporters are able to attend Saturday’s EFL opener against Rochdale. As soon as any further information is available it will be communicated.”

Harrogate Town friendly tomorrow to allow only home fans

Harrogate Town‘s friendly against Doncaster Rovers at 2pm tomorrow will be played in front of home fans only.

The club issued a statement on Thursday confirming that supporters can attend with tickets that can be purchased here.

However, the statement added the club had decided not to sell tickets to away supporters from Doncaster.

It also urged fans not to turn up without tickets as they would not be available on the turnstiles.

The club was forced to play last weekend’s friendly against Sunderland in front of an empty stadium after North Yorkshire County Council identified 17 “unacceptable risks” that led fans to be banned just 24 hours before kick-off.

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It is still unclear if the club’s first game of the English Football League season against Rochdale next Saturday will be played in front of fans. Tickets are not currently on sale.

The Stray Ferret was contacted by a season ticket holder this morning frustrated about what they said was a lack of communication from the club about ticketing arrangements for the new season.

Town are due to entertain Rochdale twice within three days: Saturday’s opening league fixture is followed by an EFL Cup fixture on August 10.

Rochdale issued a statement on Friday afternoon saying the club had yet to receive details of ticketing arrangements for the two fixtures. It said:

“As soon as details are received from our hosts we will share with all supporters. Regrettably, until further details are received, we are unable to answer any queries from supporters about either of these two fixtures.”

A Harrogate Town spokesperson said the club did not have an update on the Rochdale game yet.

Council: 17 ‘unacceptable risks’ at Harrogate Town forced us to ban fans

North Yorkshire County Council has revealed 17 “unacceptable risks” led it to ban fans from Harrogate Town’s friendly against Sunderland on Saturday just 24 hours before kick-off.

The risks included an inadequate level of stewarding, the CCTV system not being tested under match conditions and the ground’s control room, which oversees fan safety, not being connected to a phone line or the public address system.

In a statement sent today to the Stray Ferret, Matt O’Neill, assistant director for growth, planning and trading standards at NYCC, said the council sent a trading standards officer to last Wednesday’s friendly against Rotherham after safety concerns were raised.

It said the club submitted a risk assessment and stewarding plan on the morning before the Sunderland fixture that identified seven unacceptable risks. This was reviewed by NYCC officers, who found another 10 risks.

The statement said:

“We therefore concluded that there were 17 areas of unacceptable risk in total.”

The statement added the council was in discussions with the club to overcome the issues before the first home fixture of the new English Football League Division Two season against Rochdale on August 7 but that “the safety of everyone entering the facility must come first”.

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The Stray Ferret requested an interview with Harrogate Town’s managing director Garry Plant today but was told he was on leave. Nobody else from the club was put forward for an interview.

The club released a statement this afternoon that said it was “working hard behind the scenes to rectify the issues raised”.

It added:

“We would like to reiterate our sincere apologies to those supporters who had planned to attend but could not, through no fault of their own.

“Clearly this is a testing period for the club and we appreciate your continued support as we work through the issues raised.”

Fans have voiced concerns that the club’s opening home game of the new season will be played in front of an empty stadium due to unresolved issues.

Katherine Swinn, speaking on behalf of the Harrogate Town Independent Supporters Club, told the Stray Ferret yesterday that fans had “numerous unanswered questions”.

She said:

“I think the club have dealt with the situation very poorly. The lack of communication is appalling. This situation needs to be addressed urgently and a full and frank statement provided by the club otherwise the speculation will continue.”

Here is the full statement from Matt O’Neill, assistant director for growth, planning and trading standards at NYCC.

“Following safety concerns raised with us, our trading standards officers attended the match held last Wednesday night between Harrogate Town FC and Rotherham United.

“At this point it was clear there were a number of urgent matters to be addressed at the football ground, if the Sunderland match was to go ahead as planned last Saturday.

“The risk assessment and stewarding plan the club subsequently provided on Friday (23 July) morning identified seven unacceptable risks. Our officers reviewed the risk assessment and found that mitigation measures in place for a further ten risks were insufficient and we therefore concluded that there were 17 areas of unacceptable risk in total.

“These included an inadequate level of stewarding and a lack of effective communication between stewards and lack of confirmation about medical support. They also included the fact that the control room where safety of the ground is overseen, was not connected up to the public address system or the fire panels, had no phone line and a CCTV system which had not been tested under match conditions.

“Discussions now continue to see what can be done to find a safe solution looking ahead. The safety of everyone entering the facility must come first.”

“Together with partner agencies in the Safety Advisory Group we pulled out all the stops to try to support the club to deal with a range of safety measures that had to be addressed to enable the match to go ahead.

“Safety standards are put in place to protect the spectators and ensure a safe match by the Sports Ground Safety Association (an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport) and, as the public would expect, they must be met.”

Harrogate Town fans fear season opener will be played behind closed doors

Harrogate Town fans are worried the club’s opening home game of the new season will be played in front of an empty stadium.

Fans were barred from a pre-season friendly against Sunderland at the EnviroVent Stadium on Saturday less than 24 hours before kick-off because North Yorkshire County Council said a number of safety issues at the ground “made them uneasy”.

The council said these were not covid-related but were due to medical support, stewarding, and spectator safety.

The club released a statement saying it “sincerely apologised for the inconvenience caused” but has released no further details about why the match could not proceed. It did, however, say it would work with the council’s safety advisory group to address the points raised for future fixtures.

About 800 Sunderland fans had tickets refunded and the cancellation, coupled with the lack of information since, has also upset home fans.

It’s also led to speculation about whether the issues will be resolved before the season-opening match at home to Rochdale on August 7, and whether fans could once again by forced to watch Town on a livestream as they did for most of last season.

Katherine Swinn, speaking on behalf of the Harrogate Town Independent Supporters Club, told the Stray Ferret fans had “numerous unanswered questions”.

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Ms Swinn said:

“The club’s last minute statement on Friday led to significant speculation, anger, concern and numerous unanswered questions being raised. None of these matters have been addressed by the club. Some welcome clarification was provided by North Yorkshire County Council following their statement over the weekend regarding the safety issues which led to the match having to take place behind closed doors. However, the silence from the club is deafening.

“There has been no communication, clarification or any attempt by the club to address the numerous concerns and unanswered questions that have been raised nor to provide any reassurance that supporters will be able to attend the match against Rochdale. Instead the club have today reminded people that they have until this Friday to renew their season ticket for this season when supporters don’t even know if they will be allowed into the ground for the Rochdale match.

“I think the club have dealt with the situation very poorly. The lack of communication is appalling. This situation needs to be addressed urgently and a full and frank statement provided by the club otherwise the speculation will continue.”

Town are due to host their final pre-season friendly against Doncaster Rovers at the EnviroVent Stadium on Sunday.

A Harrogate Town spokesman said the club was awaiting further information before commenting on future fixtures.

North Yorkshire County Council said it awaited an individual match risk assessment and stewarding plan from the club.

Fans barred from Harrogate Town match vs Sunderland due to safety fears

Harrogate Town’s pre-season friendly against Sunderland today will be played behind closed doors after county council safety officials raised concerns.

Just 24 hours before the match, the club said it received a letter from North Yorkshire County Council‘s safety advisory group informing them of issues which “made them uneasy”. No further details were revealed.

About 800 Sunderland fans were believed to have been due to travel south for the match at the EnviroVent Stadium

There are just two weeks to go until Town’s first match of the season at home to Rochdale.

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It’s another blow for Town supporters, who last week were denied the chance of watching their side play against Premier League Newcastle United’s first team after a covid outbreak forced Magpies manager Steve Bruce to send an under-23s team instead.

Town said supporters who bought a ticket for the Sunderland game would receive a full refund.

A Harrogate Town statement said:

“At just after 2pm on Friday 23rd July the club received a letter from North Yorkshire County Council safety advisory group who had identified a number of issues that made them uneasy about the match going ahead with a crowd.

“We are working with the SAG to address the points they have raised for future fixtures.

“All supporters who purchased a ticket for the fixture will receive a full refund.

“The fixture will be available to watch live free of charge via Sunderland AFC’s official website.

“Anyone who had already purchased a stream at £10 via live.harrogatetownafc.com will be refunded.

“We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience caused”

A Sunderland AFC statement said:

“SAFC understands that supporters will be extremely disappointed by this news and its last-minute nature, with many fans incurring considerable personal expense to put travel plans in place.

“We share this disappointment and will work closely with HTFC to ensure that all ticket holders receive a full refund as soon as possible.

“Following today’s update stating that supporters would no longer be permitted to attend the fixture, SAFC has taken the decision to stream the fixture on the SAFSee platform free of charge.

Supporters who have already purchased a streaming pass will also receive a full refund.”

County council officials said the club submitted a risk assessment and stewarding plan on Friday morning following safety concerns raised after the Rotherham United game on Wednesday night.

However, the authority said the assessment and plan was “unfortunately not sufficient”. It added that “discussions continue to see what can be done to find a safe solution looking ahead”.

Among the issues that needed to be addressed were medical support, stewarding and spectator safety, according to the council.

Matt O’Neill, assistant director for growth, planning and trading standards at NYCC, said:

“Together with partner agencies in the Safety Advisory Group we have pulled out all the stops to try to support the club to deal with a range of safety measures that had to be addressed to enable the match to go ahead.

“Safety standards are put in place to protect the spectators and ensure a safe match by the Sports Ground Safety Association (an executive non-departmental public body, sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport) and, as the public would expect, they must be met.

“We recognise that this will be disappointing for the fans who were looking forward to the friendly match against Sunderland AFC, especially after such a difficult last season due to covid restrictions. However, the safety of everyone entering the facility must come first.”

Harrogate Town promotion-winning goalkeeper joins Bristol Rovers

Harrogate Town goalkeeper James Belshaw has joined Bristol Rovers on a permanent transfer.

The shot stopper, who won two promotions with Town, held the number one shirt for his entire time at the club since joining from Tamworth in June 2017.

He will now join the fellow League Two club, who are managed by former Manchester City, Newcastle and Burnley midfielder Joey Barton.

Belshaw was part of the historic promotion-winning side from the National League and played in the 3-1 play-off final win over Notts County at Wembley last year.

He was also named in the National League North Team of the Year, National League Team of the Year and was Supporters Club Player of the Year on two occasions.

A spokesperson for Harrogate Town said:

“Off the pitch, Belshaw has played a big part in the local community, inspiring a generation of young goalkeepers through sessions at our Player Development Centre.

“The departing stopper has undoubtedly been a big part in our success in recent years and for that we would like to place on record our sincere thanks for his efforts.”

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Harrogate Town welcomed keeper Mark Oxley from Southend United at the beginning of July, one of seven new signings announced this summer.

Harrogate Town fan groups locked in bitter dispute over new supporters trust

Two groups of Harrogate Town fans are locked in an increasingly bitter dispute over the launch of a new supporters trust.

Last year Town ascended to the English Football League for the first time in the club’s history and chairman Irving Weaver has ambitions to fill the club’s newly improved Envirovent Stadium on Wetherby Road with 5,000 fans.

But the club’s success and increasing professionalism on the field is being accompanied by growing pains off it.

In recent weeks, a group of Town fans has launched a trust called the Harrogate Town Supporters Trust to give supporters a voice.

Other football league clubs, such as Sheffield Wednesday and Bradford City already have fans trusts, which are democratically run and governed by the Financial Conduct Authority.

However, members of the Harrogate Town Supporters Club, which has been running for several years, believe the trust is an attempt to undermine their work.

Leaflets about the newly-formed trust were circulated to Town fans at Sunday’s pre-season friendly against Newcastle United under-23s at Wetherby Road. This alarmed many members of the supporters club, with some accusing the trust on Facebook of underhand tactics.

There was also anger that the newly-formed trust plans to put on coaches for away games, which supporters club committee member Jordan Ford has organised for many seasons.

However, the chair of the trust has said alternative away travel is needed because some fans’ drunken behaviour deters some families and fans from travelling.

Pain and heartache

Phil Holdsworth is the fan liaison officer at Harrogate Town. It’s a volunteer position aimed at improving relations between the club and fans.

He told the Stray Ferret that the trust, which says it is independent of the club, will help the club appeal to a wider supporter base and attract new supporters from as far afield as Malaysia and Vietnam.

Much of the supporters club’s anger towards the trust is due to a disagreement over when it learned of the trust being set up.

On Monday, the supporters club committee issued a statement saying it had only become aware of the trust’s formation six weeks ago.

However, Mr Holdsworth said he had a meeting with members of the supporters club in November last year when he explained how it could apply to become an affiliate of the FSA , the national body that represents football supporters.

He claims the supporters club decided not to proceed with the idea.

He said:

“I assumed they would consider it but I never heard or saw anything, Why are they not giving their members the full picture?”.

Mr Holdsworth was also advising a different group of fans on how to become a trust, which led to the formation of the new organisation. He said the fallout has led to “aggressive” criticism of him online.

He praised Mr Ford, of the supporters club, for organising away game travel but said many fans “don’t appreciate their drinking habits”.

He added he hoped the two sets of fans’ differences could be resolved:

“Nobody wants this pain and heartache. Animosity will cause division. It’s in everyone’s interests to work together.”

Best interests of the club

Clare Bridge, chair of the newly formed trust, told the Stray Ferret she too hoped the two groups could put aside their differences for the good of the club.

However, she said she would not take her 12-year-old son on the supporters club’s bus due to what she called “drunken behaviour”.

She said:

“Lots of families are being put off. I would never, ever, get on the bus.”

Ms Bridge said members of the trust were approached by Harrogate Town about forming the organisation and a more collective voice would give fans greater influence in how the club is run.

“It’s happening so it would be nice to work together. There’s always a solution.”

Lack of communication

Supporters club committee member Katherine Swinn released a statement on behalf of the committee on Monday that aimed to assuage fears the group would be replaced.

She told the Stray Ferret members were unhappy about a “lack of communication” over the way the trust had been set up.

She said:

“[It was] essentially due to the lack of communication, the way it has been set up and the continued insistence that we were informed in advance prior to the meeting in early June.

“The supporters club was not approached at any stage about becoming a trust either by Phil Holdsworth, the club or anyone else.”

She said there was “room for both” a supporters club and a trust.

“It is common for league clubs to have both trusts and supporters clubs. They are able to exist and run side by side. Ultimately whether it’s a supporters club or trust the main aims are to support the club, look after the fans and also grow the fan base too. There is room for both.”

Ms Swinn said for the past three seasons the club has put on family-friendly coaches alongside its usual coach for many away games. For the upcoming season, this will also include most games in the north of England.

“Our supporters are fully aware that they are representing both the club and the supporters club when travelling to away matches and the committee will act on behaviour which we consider to be inappropriate and/or which may impact on the reputation of the club, or supporters club.”

Harrogate Town declined to comment.