Shrewsbury Town's promotion to League One

I frequently write the leader column for the Shrewsbury Chronicle and I thought this one might find an additional audience with the readers of Underneath The Sideboard In The Front Room.

Scunthorpe souls in search of a scattercushion, Preston people pining for a pretzel, and Colchester kids keen on coleslaw could all be spending their money in Shrewsbury next season.

At least, that could be the case if football fans from far and wide decide to hang around the county town before and after watching their favourite team clash with Shrewsbury Town – and especially if those fans bring their families with them and make it a real day out.

That’s the thinking now of leading business figures who are looking forward to the benefits of the boys in blue and amber having been promoted to League One.

Statistics show that League One games attract far more away fans than League Two matches.

And that could translate into more cash being spent in the town.

Peter Bettis, president of the Shrewsbury Business Chamber, said promotion was “great news” for pubs and restaurants in the town.

And he added that the town could most certainly benefit from away fans bringing their families to Shrewsbury for a day out shopping while they go to the games.

Mr Bettis said the fact Shrewsbury have been outside of the third tier of English football for more than a decade could play a part in this, as many supporters and their families of League One clubs may not have visited the town before.

Families might very well fancy a day in a beautiful town while the football-crazy member of their entourage is absorbed in the match.

“There is more incentive as it is something new,” said Mr Bettis.

“It is not just the town centre, it is supporting the local economy. Shrewsbury has got a lot to offer for people who have never been here.”

The statistics are intriguing.

According to the latest Football League figures, the average number of visiting supporters in League One games in the 2010/11 season was 630 – that’s 75 per cent higher than the 360 figure recorded in League Two last year.

Now, if these figures were to be repeated over the course of next season, promotion for Town will mean almost 15,000 away fans will come to Shrewsbury for the 23 home games at the Meadow next year – that’s an increase of about 6,000 people.

So if all goes to plan, Shrewsbury’s shops could be selling bread bins to Brentford and hats to Hartlepool.

Daft as it sounds, it will do no harm at all to Shrewsbury’s economy.