Man United are coming to Town (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Man United are coming to Town

10:37am Friday 23rd April 2004 in Sport By Dennis Aris

PREMIERSHIP heavyweights Manchester United handed Kendal Town a massive coup when agreeing to bring a side to play Town's part-time UniBond League professionals in a Bank Holiday spectacular on Monday, May 3.

Town secretary Craig Campbell revealed this week that the club was abuzz with excitement at the prospect of a visit from Alex Ferguson's legendary Reds.

It will be the showcase fixture the club have been seeking to mark the installation of the new £48,000 state-of-the-art floodlights at the Parkside Road ground.

Craig said: "We've been badgering United for months to see if they would come along and it's paid off.

"They only play four or five of these sorts of matches at the end of the season, so this is something special for us to have been chosen.

"It will be a reserve side who will visit and in recent matches that line-up has included Djemba Djemba, Luke Fletcher and Christiano Ronaldo, or at least one or two first-teamersso you never know who might turn up."

Any money raised from the one-off match will go towards the on-going ground improvements, which now focus on the construction of two stands, for which grant aid from the Football Foundation is available Tickets will cost £5 across the board and will go on sale next week with a gate maximum of 2,000 on offer.

The match will ironically fulfil the outspoken prediction that Town will be playing Manchester United within five years' made a few seasons ago after the club had gone close to achieving promotion to the Unibond League Premier Division..

It is believed Town have played United at Old Trafford in the distant past, but the famous club has not sent such a high-profile side to the club before.

Tickets go on sale from Monday at Burrell's and Harrison's newsagencies, the Cock & Dolphin and every evening at the football club, Parkside (7-9pm).