Ladies Day lures second highest gate of season

It was Ladies Day at Bury Town’s Ram Meadow last Saturday as the Ryman Premier's Blues waived turnstile charges for all female fans attending their top flight clash against Maidstone United.

For the third year running, the Ryman Premier club staged the event to help promote ladies football in Suffolk and encourage more female supporters to back the Blues on matchdays.

Members of Town’s U10s, U11s and U12s girls teams were mascots for the day, pictured, and later took part in a half-time penalty shootout after a mini-festival of football in the run-up to kick-off.

Bury Town Ladies, who went on to welcome a big crowd to their Suffolk Women’s League fixture at the ground the following day, were also at the men’s game, helping the club to record its second highest gate of the season with 540 fans turning out to see the Stones win a tight encounter 2-1 courtesy of a last minute winner.

The result may have gone against them but Blues officials are already looking forward to next season’s event after it helped to attract a bumper crowd and promote their ladies and girls set-up.

The club’s development officer Tom Parkington said: "Bury Town hope that events like these will increase the number of female supporters following the Blues and we also aim to use events like it to help increase the profile of girls and women’s football in Bury St Edmunds."