Leigh RMI v. FC United match preview

By Matt Lawton
July 14 2005

History is in the making at Hilton Park on Saturday afternoon when FC United of Manchester, the club formed out of the ashes of Malcolm Glazer's bitter takeover of Manchester United, make their bow against RMI.

Formed in the aftermath of the controversial takeover of Manchester United by American tycoon Malcolm Glazer, FC United of Manchester (FCUM) already boast more than 4,000 fully-paid members and an impressive bank balance of more than £100,000 in the black ahead of their assault on the Second Division of the North West Counties League.

It might not be the Premiership or Champions League challenge that the supporters of this new club will have been used to at Old Trafford, but ourselves at Leigh RMI can certainly relate to the challenges that they face, not to mention the enjoyment of non-league football and Saturday afternoon games at 3pm, as opposed to the mass commercialisation of the modern professional football world.

With more than 3,000 FC United fans expected to travel to Leigh to see the first game in their club's history, RMI officials are hoping to take advantage of renewed interest in RMI throughout Leigh, with the players hopefully doing their part by putting up a good performance to try and entice these people back to RMI games again and again during the course of the season.

A tremendous atmosphere is expected, so arrive early and soak it up, not to mention get behind the lads come 3pm on Saturday afternoon!

Hilton Park's turnstiles open at 1pm to be followed by pre-match entertainment. Admission costs £10 for adults, £5 concessions with a souvenir programme on sale for £3.