Banbury United is to provide free, live-stream coverage of its friendly against FC United of Manchester this weekend

Andy Whing, manager of Banbury Utd FC, whose squad has been preparing for the friendly against FC Utd

FC United of Manchester is the club formed in protest against the Glazier takeover of Manchester United in 2005. FC United comes to the Spencer Stadium on Saturday and will be bringing a large number of fans with them. With a large local interest the club is expecting a strong four figure crowd.

The football festival starts at 12:30pm and includes access to the fan park, live local music and exciting food trailers before the match.

"It is an exciting prospect for many but the club realises that a large crowd will be difficult for many people who are still shielding," said Banbury Utd Board director James Pope.

"So we've arranged a free-to-air four-camera live stream. People will be able to watch the match on YouTube from home without it costing a penny. The coverage starts at 2:45pm and we have recruited a professional third party to run the day."

With the start of the season just around the corner Saturday's huge game provides Andy Whing with one of his last chances to settle his squad.

“We’re really looking forward to the game against FC United of Manchester on Saturday. It’s going to be a great occasion for both clubs and supporters," he said.

"We’re expecting a big crowd and looking forward to the buzz around the place. Our squad is really starting to take shape now and it’ll be a great have to showcase the talent we feel we’ve got this year.”

Mr Pope is delighted to be offering the free to view stream.

He said: “We understand the last 18 months have been really hard for a lot of people. We are not out of the woods yet and while life is starting to get back to normal, we have to remember that a lot of people will still have a degree of anxiety around crowds.

"This is a massive game against an incredibly well-run club. We want to make sure everyone has access to it. We live in an age of fantastic technological capability and as community club we've gone out of our way to make sure everyone can enjoy the occasion.”

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