Statement from Exeter City Football Club

We are disappointed that Exeter City Football Club has been relegated to League Two.

Thank you to our supporters for your unwavering loyalty, patience and understanding during a challenging period for the Club. Your backing has truly made the difference to the team this season.

Despite a spirited fight to the end, a difficult run over the last couple of months ultimately proved costly. Injuries to players and the disruption following the departure of Gary Caldwell and a number of key backroom staff have contributed to a 21st-place finish, just inside the relegation zone and a couple of points short of safety.

We know this is not where we want to be. We accept this falls short of many supporters’ expectations and we feel as disappointed as you.

Going forward we continue to improve the governance of the Club, with both boards of the Supporters’ Trust and Club working closely together to ensure long term stability in an increasingly challenging football environment. We continue to explore all of the options available to us to increase our playing budget for the coming season.

We are progressing the appointment of a permanent first team manager and once negotiations are complete, we will announce this in the coming weeks.

Thank you to Matt Taylor, Dan Green and Kevin Nicholson for their commitment to the Club. We are grateful to them and to every player who has pulled on a City shirt this season. We look forward to seeing those who are staying with us next season and wish the best of luck to those who are departing the Club.

Our focus is now an immediate reset. Working together we will learn from this season. As a Club we continue to be committed to our vital Academy, and it has been fantastic to see our younger players signing new or extending contracts in recent weeks. This summer will be a time of rebuilding as we strengthen the squad for the future.

There are also positives to recognise across the Club. Exeter City Women have had an excellent second season in the FA National Women’s League South finishing seventh following their victory in the game against Gwalia at SJP last Sunday. Congratulations to Abbie, the squad and the staff and volunteers who support this team. We are very grateful to them for their commitment.

In addition, we are grateful to the incredible work carried out across the county by our partner charity, Exeter City Community Trust, who are delivering vital health, wellbeing and education activities every single day.

Thank you to all of our committed staff across St James Park and the Cliff Hill Training Ground, all of our wonderful volunteers and our generous sponsors.

Finally. To our fans. As a supporter-owned club, we recognise the responsibility we hold to you. You are everything to this Club – thank you. We now reset and move forward together.