HERE COME THE FANS ...
McKim can’t wait to welcome supporters back to Keanie Park
Johnstone Burgh boss Jamie McKim can’t wait for the welcome sight of fans making their long- awaited return to the Keanie Park terraces this summer.
It’s been over a year since the club’s supporters last lay eyes on their side, during a 5-0 thrashing of Annbank United at Renfrew’s New Western Park on March 7.
Nobody would have guessed that more than 13 months later the coronavirus pandemic would still be stopping Burgh from stepping onto the pitch, keeping the fans outside the ground in the process.
Thankfully the club now have a start date for their new West of Scotland League Conference season, with the much-anticipated campaign set to kick off on Saturday, July 17.
Under the Scottish Government ’ s current guidelines, during level one restrictions up to 500 people can be free- standing in stadia. That number boosts up to 1,000 in level zero.
Scotland is currently projected to be at least in level one come July, meaning the club can thankfully plan to be cheered back onto the Keanie Park pitch come this summer.
McKim believes getting supporters back inside West of Scotland grounds is imperative to securing their long-term future as a club.
He told Express Sport : “We’re delighted to have a restart date we can finally work towards.
“Compared to a few months ago when we hadn’t a clue what was coming next, now we’re finalising a preseason schedule and getting our friendlies organised.
“The best part is that there’s a very good chance we’ re going to have supporters back in Keanie Park by July.
“At level one we could get 500 people in, which would be massive for the club and for the fans.
“For the sake of football, we need to get people back in the grounds. It’s so important because clubs like ours only survive because of the fans.
“It’s amazing when you think about how far back it was when we actually had supporters in, over a year now.
“The fact that we have all standing space at Keanie Park, we’re certain we could make sure it’s safe for everyone and it will be superb to hear fans cheering the boys on again.”
McKim is already working hard to ensure his side are ready to put on a show for the fans when they do finally make their welcome return to action.
That includes retaining the core of the squad that was performing so well before their last campaign was cut short by the pandemic.
McKim added: “We’re trying to get ahead of the curve. We want to get a head start before the return to contact training on May 17.
“We’re running some circuit training sessions to make sure the boys aren’t coming straight back into the thick of it from a standing start.
“I’m currently sitting with 16 signed and we’ve not lost anybody yet. We’re working on bringing in a few others, because we always want to strengthen the side.
“To be honest our main priority is keeping the core group together. We’ve got a great squad and created a good environment.
“The best signings we make will be the ones we manage to retain. We’ve got a lot of interest in our guys given our recent success on the pitch.
“We don’t have as big a budget as some clubs but I’m hopeful we can keep the majority of our side.”