Yorkshire Post

Just the ticket for Sharks fans ahead of new campaign

- NICK WESTBY

SHEFFIELD SHARKS are to offer existing season-ticket holders more games for their money in 2020-21, following the decision to cancel the current British Basketball League campaign.

The 2019-20 campaign was suspended following the BBL Cup final in mid-March and the league – in consultati­on with their 12 member clubs – announced on Monday that the season would be ended with no champions crowned.

Sharks season-ticket holders had seen 11 home games at Ponds Forge up to that point, and could potentiall­y have seen a further eight with the conclusion of the BBL Championsh­ip regular season and the play-offs.

To compensate for those lost fixtures, existing season-ticket holders will be able to see up to 27 games next season encompassi­ng

BBL Championsh­ip, Trophy, Cup and play-off competitio­ns, if they renew their ticket.

“For those people who had season tickets this season, for the same price next season they will get an increased number of games,” explained Sharks general manager Sarah Backovic.

“Clubs are looking at various models, but that’s what we’ll be offering because we believe that will be the biggest advantage for fans.

“We might still have to adhere to social distancing, and from our point of view, it will be easier to manage those protocols when we know how many season-ticket holders we have and how many will be attending the games.”

The BBL will provisiona­lly return in October, a few weeks later than usual, with the aim being to condense more fixtures into the season to compensate for the lost games, and revenue, this term.

“We’re still in discussion­s about the method of how we can return by the autumn, because a lot could still change,” admitted Backovic, who has been the Sharks representa­tive on regular league-wide conversati­ons staged throughout the pandemic.

“It’s looking like it will be October. We’ll be preparing for every scenario; playing behind closed doors, playing in front of limited attendance­s or full audiences.

“Even though lockdown rules are being relaxed there wasn’t a realistic chance of concluding the season. So we’re just now looking forward and making proper preparatio­ns for the next campaign.”

The BBL last year had the foresight to have key motion cameras installed in all arenas to ensure games could be live-streamed.

Sharks have five players contracted for 2020-21 and a further seven spots to fill on their roster.

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United Kingdom