BROMSGROVE Sporting have increased the capacity of the Victoria Ground to 3,500 for their FA Vase semi-final first leg against Cleethorpes Town later this month.
After 2,984 fans watched The Rouslers book their place in the last four of the Vase on February 19 with a 2-0 victory over Buckland Athletic, club officials had submitted another application to Worcestershire County Council’s safety advisory group to increase the capacity from 3,000 to 4,000.
Sporting had saw their ground capacity increased to 3,000 prior to the Buckland clash after 1,487 supporters witness Sporting beat Bristol Manor Farm 2-1 in the last 16 of the Vase.
But following long negotiations with the county council, both parties agreed on a capacity of 3,500.
Tickets for the history-making semi-final have flown out the window, with more than 2,000 already dished out and Sporting’s chairman Mike Burke told the Standard extra tickets have already been printed.
“I think having a capacity of 3,500 was fair because we are trying to achieve things in stages,” he said.
“We have got to be able to say we can manage 3,500 fans correctly so I can understand the safety concerns if we had 4,000.
“If we can prove we can manage 3,500 then who knows what will happen as we will want big gates for the FA Cup and FA Vase next season.
“We already have the tickets printed and are ready to go on sale.”
Mike also said the capacity increase was ‘reasonable’ and that the club wish to continue their good relationship with the county council.
He added: “The county council felt going from 3,000 to 4,000 was a big leap so to meet halfway is a reasonable gate.
“They have seen we have done a good job managing a crowd close to 3,000 but it’s a case of being more cautious as 500 extra people are going to be in the ground.
“The county council have put their trust in us and we want to carry on working together to see what can be done in the future.”
Remaining tickets for the Vase game go on sale tomorrow (Thursday) night inside the Rouslers Bar from 7pm.
There will also be a fans forum at 8pm on Thursday evening where supporters can pitch their questions to manager Paul Smith and the board of directors.
Tickets will also be on sale at the Rouslers Bar on Friday night.
