South Shield FC record crowd as football matches postponed
- Published
Fans whose games had been cancelled turned up to watch
With coronavirus leading to the cancellation of Premier League and EFL matches, one Tyneside football club saw a record attendance on Saturday.
Northern Premier League team South Shields FC took on FC United of Manchester at its Mariners Park ground, beating them 5-3.
The promotion clash attracted a gate of 3,274 - usual attendance ranges from 1,500 to 2,000.
The crowd included fans of teams whose games had been cancelled.
These including Swansea fans whose game at Middlesbrough had been called off.
A Sheffield United fan, whose side were due to play at Newcastle, thanked the club in a tweet for a "great time".
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South Shields FC said it relied on gate receipts and hospitality sales to survive.
Chairman Geoff Thompson said: "For clubs at our level it's a huge thing, I wouldn't deny it.
"There's no media level here at this level of football, therefore not turning up means the club has got no revenue."
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- Published2 July 2017
