Important information for Kent & Gloucestershire Royal London Cup matches

Sussex Shark’s welcome Kent Spitfires (Friday 30th July) and Gloucestershire (Sunday 1st August) to The 1st Central County Ground for their next two matches in this year's Royal London Cup.

We remain dedicated to keeping you safe and making people feel as comfortable as possible when visiting the ground. If you’re coming to either or both the matches, please read the information below which sets out how things will work before and during your visit.

For both matches, gates open at 9.30am with the play scheduled to begin at 11am. Tickets will be available online until 11am on each matchday. We strongly encourage you to buy your tickets online as you may encounter a lengthy wait to purchase tickets at the gate as we need to collect contact information for all spectators for NHS Track and Trace purposes.

Please remember that members will need to claim a ticket for the match. You will not be able to gain access with your membership card alone.

Pre-match checklist

• Don’t attend if you are displaying any symptoms of COVID-19 or are required to self-isolate.
• To avoid a lengthy delay at the gate, secure your ticket for the match online. This includes members, who will need to claim a ticket to gain entry.
• Check your email for your match day ticket(s). Tickets for Friday's match against Kent Spitfires have been sent to your registered email address. If you haven’t received them, please check spam filters before contacting the ticketing team. Tickets purchased online between now and 11am on the day of the match will be sent to your email address soon after. Tickets already purchased for Sunday's match against Gloucestershire will be sent on Friday 30th July, with any tickets subsequently bought being sent soon after purchase.
• Once received, download your ticket(s) to your mobile or print them out, so they can be scanned when you arrive.
• Plan your journey to the ground bearing in mind that entry for all spectators will be through the main gates on Eaton Road and that you’ll need to leave enough time for ticket checks and other entry procedures.
• Bring a credit or debit card for any purchases. The ground will be cashless.
• Download the NHS COVID-19 app to your phone. You can use this to check-in at the ground for track and trace purposes.
• An overview of what to expect inside the ground is below, but please read our full spectator code of conduct so you know exactly how things will work during your visit.

Inside the ground

• All tickets for this match are situated in the Spen Cama Pavilion and Jointing Tech Sharks Stand and all facilities are located between the Spen Cama Pavilion and Cow Corner. The whole of the Cromwell Road End at the north of the ground is closed to spectators.
• Only sit in your allocated seat and remain seated whenever possible. If you do leave your seat, exit the row with your back to other spectators.
• Unless unable to for medical reasons, we strongly encourage you to continue wearing a face covering when not seated, particularly in indoor areas. All our staff and stewards will continue to wear face coverings in public areas of the ground.
• Sanitise your hands regularly. Hand sanitiser stations are available around the ground.
• A one-way system will no longer be in operation, but please give fellow supporters space when moving around the ground.
• We encourage you not to congregate in public areas of the ground wherever possible. This will avoid areas becoming overly congested.
• You must stay out of non-public parts of the ground, including players’ areas and the pitch, at all times. This includes during intervals and following the conclusion of the match.
• Please follow any instructions from our stewarding team who will be on hand to make sure everybody stays safe.

Match day facilities

• A wide range of refreshments, including hot and cold meals and snacks, hot drinks, soft drinks, beers, wines and spirits will be available from the Long Room Bar in the Spen Cama Pavilion and Greig’s Café at the rear of the Jointing Tech Sharks Stand. Concessions will be situated in the concourse at the south of the ground and the Sharks Bar will be open for hot drinks, soft drinks, beers, wines, spirits and confectionary. For Friday's match only, the Wilbury Bar will also be open for beers, wines and soft drinks and confectionary.
• Toilets are available in the Spen Cama Pavilion and at the rear of both the Jointing Tech Sharks Stand and South Stand. At busy periods, please protect other supporters by waiting outside for someone to vacate the facilities before entering yourself.  
• The club shop/reception will be open from gates opening until 5pm. To protect our staff, a four-person capacity limit will remain in place in this area. If the club shop/reception is full, please wait outside for someone to leave before entering yourself.

In the event of wet weather...

• Please come prepared for all weather conditions.
• Opened umbrellas will be permitted during any interruptions to play.
• You will be able to gain readmission to the ground if you leave, but make sure you pick up a pass out card from the stewards at the front gate.
• Please avoid congregating in covered areas to help maintain a safe distance between supporters.  
• The fantastic groundstaff at The 1st Central County Ground will do everything they can to allow the teams to complete the fixture and the umpires will wait as long as possible to try and faciliate a completed match (minimum ten overs per side).  Any decision to delay or abandon a match - and the timing of those decisions - is entirely in the hands of the match officials. We will keep you updated with any news on the @SussexCCC Twitter account and on the Match Centre on the Sussex Cricket website.
• In the event that the match is curtailed or abandoned, our policy is available here.