Exeter City FC

Each summer every fan sits nervously waiting for that day in early August when, finally, the football season can kick off again.

After three long months of frantically scanning the darkest corners of the web for any shred of transfer gossip, they can pile back into the terraces and get down to the serious business of supporting their clubs.

This piece will take a trip down memory lane, looking at how the Grecians have fared in each of their last five opening day outings.

1. 04/08/18: City 3 Carlisle United 1

A new era dawned at St James Park as City boss Matt Taylor took charge of his first competitive match of the Grecians following the summer departure of long-serving manager Paul Tisdale.

Matt was tasked with the job of leading the Grecians into another season of League Two action following a second successive defeat at Wembley stadium in the play-off final. The City manager had a positive pre-season with the Grecians coming into the first game of the new campaign off the back of a 4-0 win over League One side Bristol Rovers in their final friendly.

It was a fantastic day for the Grecians as they picked up a 3-1 win over John Sheridan’s side. All three goals came from new summer signings with Nicky Law netting the first of the afternoon with a well-taken side footed finish in the first half.

Jonathan Forte quickly added a second for the Grecians when he found space before firing at goal with a well-taken effort. Carlisle then threatened towards the end of the first period and they pulled a goal back with a header from Richie Bennett, but youngster Tristan Abrahams confirmed the three points late on when he finished coolly.

The match preceded an exciting campaign in Matt Taylor’s first season in charge with a number of highlights. Unfortunately, the Grecians missed out on a place in the end of season play-offs by just one point.

2. 05/08/17: City 1 Cambridge United 0

The Grecians came up against Cambridge United on the opening day of the 2017/18 season at St James Park as they made a winning start to the campaign.

After thrashing Dorchester Town 6-1 in a pre-season match just a few days before, Paul Tisdale named the same starting XI. It was the perfect start to the season when the Grecians went ahead five minutes in after a long ball from Jordan Moore-Taylor towards David Wheeler causing havoc in the United box as Jake Carroll handled the ball, leaving referee Trevor Kettle with little choice but to point to the spot.

David Forde then saved Reuben Reid’s penalty but was unable to push the ball clear as the now former City striker pounced to fire in the rebound. Liam McAlinden looked threatening for much of the afternoon and had a shot go over Forde’s goal in a tight match at St James Park. Luke Berry and Jabo Ibehre looked the most likely for the away side, but were limited to little in front of goal with Christy Pym and his defenders doing well to keep out United and hold onto the win.

3. 06/08/17: Blackpool 2 City 0

Having opened their previous four campaigns at home, the Grecians were finally sent on the road, beginning their 2016/17 season away at Blackpool. With the Seasiders having endured successive relegations they were clearly aiming at a fresh start, including five debutants in their starting line up.

This ploy paid immediate dividends, with new signing Kyle Vassell combining with his fellow debutant Colin Daniel as Blackpool took the lead on 19 minutes.

Having been stung from the off, City worked hard to get back into the game, creating a number of chances. However they were unable to make them count as Ollie Watkins pushed a diving header wide with the goal at his mercy and Jake Taylor found himself denied by the post.
As the second half progressed, many around the ground began to feel that it was not going to be the Grecians day, with Blackpool keeper Sam Slocombe producing a number of fine saves to preserve his side’s lead.

City’s misfortune was effectively summed up 10 minutes after the break when Troy Brown accidentally diverted a cross past his goalkeeper to double the Seasiders’ lead and ensure that the Grecians would have to make the long trip home empty handed.

Finding themselves at the bottom of the table in late December, they began a remarkable run of form that saw them rise to fifth by the end of the season as they confirmed a place in the play-offs.

Having despatched Carlisle United in dramatic fashion over two legs, they sadly fell at the final hurdle, losing the play-off final 2-1 to Blackpool, a full nine months after the teams had initially met at Bloomfield Road.

4. 08/08/15: City 3 Yeovil Town 2

City kicked off their 2015/16 campaign with a game against local rivals, Yeovil Town.
Although west country derbies are renowned for their hard fought, competitive nature, this particular fixture was marked by a show of solidarity. Occurring just two days before the fifth anniversary of the tragic passing of former Glovers and Grecian striker Adam Stansfield, rounds of applause were held in the 7th and 9th minutes, reflecting the numbers that he wore for both clubs respectively.

City were undoubtedly the brighter team with Tom Nichols constantly menacing Yeovil’s defence. They finally took the lead on 31 minutes, after Connor Roberts dragged Alex Nicholls down in the penalty area. Nichols stepped up and slotted the resulting spot kick, sending the keeper the wrong way.

City doubled their lead just 10 minutes later when David Wheeler raced clear of the Glovers’ defence, and placing his body on the line, prodded the ball under the onrushing Chris Weale.
City began the second half lethargically and were immediately made to pay. Just a minute after the break, substitute Harry Cornick hit a lovely shot on the turn, past the despairing dive of City keeper Bobby Olejnik.

20 minutes later, the situation worsened for the Grecians when the lively Cornick went down under a soft challenge from Christian Ribeiro, prompting angry shouts from the Big Bank. Ignoring the protests of fans and players alike, the referee awarded Yeovil a penalty, which was dispatched calmly by midfielder Matt Dolan.

To the Grecians’ credit however, spurred on by their aggrieved fans, they appeared determined to press for the winner with David Wheeler spurning one chance, before striking the upright with a long range drive just minutes later.

Their perseverance paid off just six minutes from time as debutant Will Hoskins latched onto a Matt Oakley through ball dinking it over Weale, and ensuring City a winning start to the season.
Once again, however, the Grecians were unable to push on from their dramatic opening day win, ending the season with a 14th placed finish.

5. 09/08/14: City 1 Portsmouth 1 

Opening day 2014 saw fellow south coast side Portsmouth make the three hour trip along the A35 to St James Park, taking on an Exeter side containing the young prospects, Matt Grimes and Tom Nichols. With both teams having finished the previous campaign languishing nearer the bottom half of the table, it was clear that both sides wanted to start their new seasons on a positive note.

During the first half, City had the lion’s share of the play, creating several clear cut chances. They were eventually rewarded on the half hour mark, when Craig Woodman’s deflected cross reached an unmarked Nichols, who smashed the ball into the bottom corner with a venomous half-volley.

After half-time however, the momentum shifted as Pompey began to take control of the game. Having been brilliantly denied by City keeper Christy Pym on a couple of occasions, they equalised through Jed Wallace in the 74th minute, ensuring that the spoils were shared.

A solid result on the opening day saw a much improved league performance throughout the 2014/15 season as the Grecians finished 10th once again, seven points short of their rivals Plymouth Argyle who occupied the final play-off place.

Here are the quick links to everything #FixtureReleaseDay

• View the full fixture list
• Read Matt Taylor's reaction to the fixtures
• Take a look at the key dates
• Find out how to sync the fixtures to your calendar/phone
• Download fixture wallpaper for your computer/lock screen
• Test your knowledge with our fixtures day quiz
• Take a look back at the last 5 opening day fixtures