Montrose FC Chief Executive Peter Stuart has issued the following statement to fans, both looking back on the past season and ahead to the next.

“On the pitch, the Management Team, their staff, and the players once again delivered success above and beyond our expectations. In such a highly competitive league, including four full time clubs, to secure a fifth play-off place in six years is outstanding and something we are all extremely proud of. I can’t thank enough all of those involved for their efforts and dedication in making this happen.

“Additionally, to do so with lengthy injuries to several key players makes the achievement even greater, and it was fantastic to see a number of our Youth Academy players benefiting as a result, getting the chance to make their first team debuts.

“Off the park, the challenge was equally high. We faced significant financial pressures due to many revenue streams being down on previous years, combined with the extreme inflationary pressures of services and utilities that all businesses in the current climate are having to learn to cope with.

“Despite this, such was the resilience and resourcefulness of all our staff behind the scenes, we were able to weather this storm and navigate our way through to the end of the season.

“We are equally fortunate to have a dedicated and hard-working group of Directors and Associate Directors, without whom the club would simply not function, or indeed exist, and they also deserve a huge amount of praise.

“Looking forward, the hard work of preparing for the upcoming season has already begun and, in doing so, we have had to take some tough decisions to ensure the club can both retain its ability to compete in this league, whilst remaining financially viable.

“We have implemented several changes across the Operations, Admin, and backroom teams, together with a raft of cost saving measures. Also, we will regrettably have to increase some prices for next season.

“In addition, and to assist the Club going forwards, we have also seen our Management Team and all the players agreeing to a reduction in elements of their remuneration.

“The fact we managed to reach agreement on these hard decisions speaks volumes for the relationships we have between the Board, staff and players and it is this real togetherness that will ensure we continue to enjoy many seasons ahead, and hopefully successful ones at that.

“Having said that, our ability to strengthen the team will be limited and so, as with prior seasons, we will be looking to the loan market to strengthen the squad.

“We finished last year with two bumper crowds at Links Park against Queen of the South and Inverness Caley Thistle, and it is this fantastic atmosphere we would like to see more often, as not only is it good for us financially, but the players really feed off the energy created, making matchdays even more special and memorable.

“To that end, we have extended our Early Bird Season Ticket offer from the end of May to the start of the league campaign, and also frozen our Hospitality prices, whilst retaining our renowned level of quality and matchday experience.”

Chairman John Crawford added, “Our success last season, including MFC Women retaining their place in the Premier League at the first time of asking, will hopefully encourage our fans, hospitality guests, and sponsors to once again rally behind the team and come out in numbers.

“We will be reliant on their continued support to ensure we have another good year and would urge all the MO fan base to come out and help in any way they can. Whether it is signing up to the weekly £1 Lucky Numbers lottery, joining our innovative monthly Club 500 draw, sponsoring a player, booking hospitality, buying merchandise, or coming to a game, these are all hugely important sources of revenue for us.

“Also, we are always happy to talk to new potential sponsors and indeed to anyone who wants to help the club in anyway at all, be it financially or even through voluntary assistance.

“Without fans and sponsors, we would not have a club, and so we look forward to welcoming as many of you as possible to our first home game, against Motherwell on Tuesday, July 16th, as we embark together on hopefully another season to remember!”

Should you wish to support the club please contact us at sales@montrosefc.co.uk or follow the following links.

Buy your Season Ticket here: https://montrosefc.ticketco.events/uk/en/e/season_tickets_202425

Join our Club 500 scheme here: https://montrosefc.co.uk/club-500/

Find more information on sponsorship and advertising here: https://montrosefc.co.uk/advertising-sponsorship/