A sad day for our great rival

We note with great sadness the news about the demise of our great rivals Hednesford Town FC.

For many years a fixture against Hednesford has always been viewed as a must-see match and a local derby creating atmosphere and excitement for both clubs. Whilst the rivalry existed with both clubs trying to outdo the other on these occasions, Stafford Rangers take no pleasure in hearing the news emanating from the club.

Non- League football represents one large football family, the best in local communities and brings supporters together to get behind the badge and what it means.

Both teams are always ‘more than just a football club’

Hednesford like us have a long and proud history and we are devastated and feel the pain and loss that all their fans, staff, management and volunteers will be going through as they come to terms with the closure of the club. It will have an effect not only to those immediately involved at the club but also in the wider community whose businesses support Hednesford.

It brings home the difficulty of running a non-league club and the responsibility we all face in ensuring that clubs are run sustainably for the next generation.

If there is anything that we can do to help we ask that anyone from Hednesford contact us and we will do what we can.

Everyone associated with Hednesford Town are welcome at Stafford Rangers whether you are a fan, part of the back room set up or the Academy and we wish you all the very best and hope that sometime in the future we can see both teams on the same pitch once more.

STAFFORD RANGERS FC

Nathan Blissett agrees terms

Nathan Blissett is delighted to re-sign with Stafford Rangers and says manager Matt Hill’s ambitions sit well with him as the striker looks forward to next season.

Blissett joined the Boro back in late February and played a big part in the tremendous end to the season which saw Stafford to a 12th-placed finish in the Northern Premier League.

The striker netted twice against Liversedge away from home and became an important member of Matt Hill’s side.

Blissett will return to Marston Road next season and is extremely pleased about this saying: “I’m very happy.

“I’ve been in conversation with a few clubs over the off-season just to see what’s on offer, but nothing could really work as well as what Stafford have offered me.

“With the season and how it finished I feel like we had a really strong team and what the manager’s looking to do moving forward sits right with what I want to do next season.”

The 32-year-old revealed manager Hill has been keen to tie him down for another season and spoke about his love for the team spirit and atmosphere at the Rangers.

“The gaffer was calling me non-stop throughout the last couple of weeks,” said the forward.

“The changing room is amazing. I’ve had a career of 11-plus years but that changing room is brilliant.

“From the first time I went in there. Singing after games when we win.

“There’s a real team ethos and it was a joy to be part of it in the two-three months that I was there so I’m more than happy to go again with those boys and see what we can do next season.”

Blissett is looking forward to the return after a well-earned break and believes he can offer something good to the younger players with his experience .

He said: “I’m looking forward to it, I’m going to enjoy my off-season, I’m not rushing to get back.

“I’m a senior pro now, I can bring a bit of senior knowledge and wisdom to the younger lads, help them along the way and get a bit more out of them, while doing that to myself.

“I’m not sure how many years I’ve got left. I want to be productive and do something with my career, so hopefully it ends up being a good year and we can achieve something brilliant.”

In other news:- we have added the following games to our pre-season list:

• Newtown HOME Tuesday 25th July 7.45pm KO
• Leek Town HOME Saturday 29th July 3.00pm KO

Additional games will be confirmed in due course.

STAFFORD RANGERS FC

Match Day Prices and Season Tickets Launched

In preparation for the next campaign, we are delighted to announce that our Season Tickets will be available to buy from Saturday 20th May at 12.00 noon through our box office site partnered with Kaizen, or by visiting the club office between the hours of 11.00 am to 2pm from Monday 22nd May.

Season Ticket Sales are a vital aspect of the close season bringing in much needed income into the football club as we prepare for kick off on 12th August.

Ticket Admission Prices for 2023/24

Financial pressure on the football club never eases and our costs have gone risen substantially, so we have had to increase costs marginally to reflect the economic climate and challenging demands we face.

Adults £13.00 (Full Season Cost £273.00) Concessions & Students £8.00 (full Season Cost £168) Under 16’s £4.00 (Full Season Cost £84.00) Access to Stand a further £2.00.

From the date of launch to the end of July you will benefit from being able to purchase with an Early Bird discount of 15%. After the end of July, the discount reduces to 10%.

EARLY BIRD PRICES INCLUDING DISCOUNT

Adult Ground – £233.00

Adult Ground & Stand – £268.00

Concessions (60 years & over) – £143.00

Concessions Ground & Stand – £179.00

Under 16’s – £72.00

Students – £143.00

The club obviously must pay administration fees to our ticketing partner who provides the back-office system and ST Cards which diminish our net return. So, if you want to help the club even more, we suggest that you go into the club office where we can process your purchase and save money, but you can also buy your ticket online from our box office.

As a Season Ticket holder, you will also receive 5 tickets for entry in the club lottery at the end of August and entry into a prize draw for a Behind the Scenes Pre-Match Experience at a home game of your choice. So, you could pay win the price of your ticket when the Lottery is drawn or look forward to a dressing room visit, listen to the pre-game preparations, get a photograph with the Managers, and soak up the atmosphere at Marston Road on match day! The prize draw for this will be made at half time on the first home game.

Physical Season Ticket Cards should be ready for collection early July well in advance of the season, we will let you know when they are ready!

A full fixture of pre-season friendlies starts on 8th July as we play Stafford Town (A) at 3.0pm and we look forward to seeing you.

Season Ticket holders are vital to the club, and we thank you in advance for your commitment, support, and loyalty. We really do need you to get behind us and hope that we can attract even more fans to purchase tickets this year!

STAFFORD RANGERS FC

First set of friendlies released

We can now confirm our first batch of pre-season friendlies for the 2023/24 season.

Details will be confirmed closer to the date and listen out for any new additions to this list soon.

• Stafford Town AWAY Saturday 8th July 3.00pm KO
• Eccleshall AWAY Tuesday 11th July 7.30pm KO
• Walsall Wood AWAY Saturday 15th July 3.00pm KO
• Hanley Town AWAY Saturday 22nd July 3.00pm KO

STAFFORD RANGERS FC

Retained List

We are delighted to confirm that we have exercised options on both Tom Tonks and Joe Willis, which keeps both players at the club until the end of the 2023/24 season.

We can also confirm that the following players have agreed terms for the 2023/24 season:

Cameron Belford, Andy Burns, Ethan Stewart, James O’Neill, Joe Dunne, Al-Ray Harvey and Kaiman Anderson.

Discussions continue with the remaining players from last season and with potential new signings.

More updates will be released in due course.

STAFFORD RANGERS FC

Latest Update on the Squad

Discussions are presently being undertaken with all players but we can confirm the following:

Jack Baxter has reluctantly left the club due to work commitments which will affect travelling to and from the club, particularly on weekdays. We would like to thank Jack for his time at the club and wish him well for the future.

We can also confirm that Callum Saunders, Luis Morrison-Derbyshire and Andrew Kiwomya have been released and we would like to thank them all for their efforts at SRFC.

Good luck in the future lads.

STAFFORD RANGERS FC