THE FANS support is the most important element to everything that happens at Edgar Street, according to Chairman Ken Kinnersley.

The visit of Blyth Spartans on Saturday will mark another chapter in the phoenix club's remarkable history as they begin their maiden National League North campaign following three league titles on the bounce.

Over 1,600 fans have already purchased season tickets for the coming campaign with many more buying individual tickets and Kinnersley says that their support will be vital during the coming months.

“The fans are vital to the club, to the team, to everything because without them we wouldn’t have football at Edgar Street," he said

“They are the people who have put the club back on the map and they’ve been phenomenal, they have supported the club from day one and they are the club.

“The fans are the most important element of what happens at Edgar Street, this season we were lucky a lot of people supported us and came and bought season tickets early.

“We didn’t need the money but the way we operate the finances is that the cost of running the football club, that is everything not just player’s wages but also staff wages and everything else, is projected through the season and is not using money from last season.

“Consequently their support is vital and the most important element."

Kinnersley admits that the club don't have biggest playing budget in the league but hopes manager Pete Beadle will work his magic with the money available.

He added: “It’s going to be a difficult season for sure, it’s going to be competitive and I suspect for once we’re not the biggest fish in the pond.

“There will be five or six with bigger playing budgets than that we’ve been able to give the manager this season but we should be competitive.

"We’ve given the manager a budget we could afford to give him and he’s accepted that and working within that. The manager has been busy trying to find players and replacements and I think he is fairly happy that he has got a competitive squad.

“We’ll have to see what magic the manager can bring to this season and hopefully the players can stay fit."

The club is also progressing off the pitch with artist impressions of a re-developed Blackfriars End due to be released in the next couple of weeks.

Although plans are yet to be finalised, it is thought the re-developed stand could accommodate 800 seats with room to expand further if required.

“I have no idea of the start time and I’m convinced that it will happen in the medium term," added Kinnersley.

"There is a lot of work involved and two quite substantial mobile phone substations in there, so relocating those is going to be mammoth.

“The biggest problem is finding a new access point into the stadium when they redevelop along Blackfriars Street but we’re in discussions with all of those things.

“It has been on-going for a couple of years now and I’m sure it will be 12 to 18 months before we see anything.

“It has to go through planning but there is definitely a will within the council to do it or they wouldn’t have gone as far as they have with their preferred partner Keepmoat.

“It would be nice to get back to a four-sided stadium and have something facing onto the Old Market that doesn’t make the football club look like a scrapyard because that’s what it looks like at the moment unfortunately.”