The Blues have introduced Town 7s, a new initiative which gives young supporters the chance to celebrate their seventh birthdays at a home game along with seven friends.

The scheme ran for the first time at the Peterborough United fixture on Saturday 1st February with 27 children taking part.

Young fans that are registered on the Town database and turned seven in January were invited along with seven friends and two adults free of charge.

They got to meet the Town 7s Team in the FanZone where they received a goody bag, including a birthday T-shirt, while the child celebrating their birthday also received a birthday badge.

Town 7s is part of the Blues’ long-term strategy to appeal to young supporters with season ticket holders aged under 12 having risen 70 per cent from last season.

Town PR manager Dan Palfrey told the club site: "We know we have to be proactive and engaging with youngsters and this is another initiative we have started in the last year or so.

"It's great to see young supporters coming to Portman Road and the initiatives we have introduced means we are in a good place in terms of increasing the number of young Blues fans.”

EFL research has indicated that the average age for a boy to watch their first live football match is seven and a girl nine.

In addition to Town 7s, the Blues have also introduced Junior Announcer and Class of Blues this season, while School of the Day has continued having been introduced during the previous campaign.

The next Town 7s fixture is the game against Coventry City on Saturday 7th March. The Blues will write to all children on their database who celebrate their birthdays in February. To register your child on the database visit here or email town7s@itfc.co.uk.

Photo: ITFC

azuremerlangus added 18:22 - Feb 26 Whilst finishing 7th in the table...
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itfcjoe added 20:14 - Feb 26 Nice initiative, good to see
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blues1 added 10:14 - Feb 27 What is wrong with some of our fans. Why do they find it necessary to make negative comments on even stories like this, which is a positive thing being done by the club. Why cant u just comment on the story and leave the negativity for posts that maybe warrant it?
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BecclesITFC added 12:55 - Feb 27 Very nice to see and I don't have kids. Very important to make youngsters feel part of a club. It will pay dividends. This is one area the club IS improving, more work to do but the club is getting more active with the community.
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azuremerlangus added 16:43 - Feb 27 What is wrong with some of our fans? Why do they find it necessary not to have a sense of humour... Anyway, I do think it is a good idea.
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Northstandveteran added 18:22 - Feb 27 A sense of humour is not allowed on this site azuremerlangus. Say three hail Marie's and lock yourself under the stairs whilst beating yourself with a bamboo cane.
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