Market Drayton urge fans: Come and see us!

They host Shifnal Town (7.45pm) followed by another friendly against Bridgnorth Town on Saturday, (3pm) as manager Dan Stevens steps up pre-season preparations.

Amended crowd control regulations, introduced as part of a gradual relaxation in coronavirus safety regulations have made it possible for Town to open their turnstiles again.

But normal social distancing rules remain in place together with regulations normally applied to bars and catering areas – all of which will be operating at both games.

Club officials said they have made every effort to make the fans’ return as safe and enjoyable as possible and boss Stevens added: “The lads will be out to make an impression so the message is ‘come along and support your local club; come and se what you’ve been missing’.

“We’ve got through an awful lot of good work so far and the lads are looking forward to these games, especially as there’s a local element to them.

“We’re building very much as I had hoped, with these two games leading into our toughest pre-season fixtures, at Aberystwyth on September 5 and our old friends Telford rounding things off on Tuesday, September 8.”

Town are then scheduled to delve straight into the FA Cup as the start of their comnpetitive season, entertaining Stone Old Alleynians or Tividale in the preliminary round on September 12.

There’s no start date yet for the Northern Premier League in whose south east division they compete, but they do have another knock-out date against Bury Town in the FA Trophy on September 26.

In common with other non-League clubs, Town have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic so a small charge of £3 is being made at the gate, with £1 concessions with free entry for under 16’s.