IT IS easy to get lost inside the Weymouth Football Club shop.
The building might not be a labyrinth but for Terras’ fans there are mystical nods at every glance.
From the self-titled ‘programme corner’ to club kits of yesteryear, there are little treasure troves packed into this, from the outside at least, unassuming space.
Pictures of last season’s memorable Southern Premier South title win dot the room.
They are flanked by newspaper clippings of that 8-0 win over arch-rivals Dorchester, framed and hung proudly on the wall.
In amongst the reminders of past glories you will find Pete Nash beavering away.
Nash, chairman of the Weymouth Football Club Supporters’ Association (WFCSA), is one of the Terras’ army of volunteers without whom the club simply would not survive.
For eight years Nash has chaired the WFCSA and run the shop almost as long.
Echosport meets Nash as he unpacks the latest batch of replica Weymouth apparel, the sales of which directly line the club’s purse strings.
By his own admission, Nash prefers to look “forward” and is set on raising awareness of the WFCSA.
“We’re now starting to gain traction with the events that we do,” he enthuses.
“We’ve held regular quiz nights over the last 18 months or so and raised over £3,000 through different bits and pieces.
“We administer the Claret and Blue lottery and the club shop is our biggest generation of income.
“Everything is run entirely by volunteers. Everything we generate we put into the football club in some guise or another.
“We’ve just been working on a plan to help the away travel club – another facet raising tens of thousands of pounds so the club hasn’t had to pay anything for away travel.
“We’re getting involved in supporting them. These groups all support the Terras.”
With the WFCSA’s formation borne through an amalgamation of the Terras’ Trust and the Supporters’ Club, Weymouth’s many pockets of support are beginning to harmonise.
Key to that channelled direction is chairman Ian White.
“Under Ian’s leadership it’s all coming together for that same goal,” Nash said.
“Ian’s a hard worker, a Terras’ supporters’ fan, a Terras’ fan and has an excellent board around him.
“The Supporters’ Association under previous regimes have been ticking along in the background doing what we can.
“Ian has really embraced everything about the Supporters’ Association. That’s what Weymouth Football Club has been crying out for for a long time.
“Now, we work excellently with the board. I’ve been going to board meetings for well over a year now. Ian always makes sure I know how the club is being run.”
Recent successes under manager Mark Molesley have seen a large increase in home attendances.
Nash is keen to “harness” that support and boost the number of volunteers within the WFCSA.
He said: “We are actively asking people to come along, see what we’re about. Lots of people do lots of different jobs.
“It would be nice to spread those out at the same time as increasing our numbers.
“The seven of us that run the Supporters’ Association have guys and girls that come along and help on matchdays.
“It’s never enough, it’s always a constant struggle. We’re just looking for people, for a few hours, to come along on a matchday or a non-matchday and clean the place up.
“When (the fans) come here we’re trying to create that buzz of a real matchday experience, so we can entice those people at home to join the Supporters’ Club.
“The more people there are, the stronger the voice we have.”
Above all else, the 90 minutes of hard work on the pitch undertaken by the players is matched by the diligence of the volunteers.
And, if the WFCSA gets their way, that work will translate into success.
Maybe, just maybe, there will be new reminders of past glories hanging in the shop for Terras’ fans to reminisce upon in the coming years.
