Ahead of this weekend’s anniversary fixtures, Supporters Trust Chair Peter Ferlie has penned the following article:

I’m very honoured to be the Exeter City Supporters Trust Chair in this anniversary year and to be able to write this article about our fantastic club.

For 125 years, Exeter City Football Club has been much more than just a football team. It has been a constant in the life of the city – a place where generations have come together, where lifelong friendships have been formed and where everlasting memories have been made.

There is something uniquely powerful about supporting a club like Exeter City. It is not about following the biggest names or being part of a multi-club conglomerate. It is about belonging. It is about being part of something that feels rooted in the place you call home. And for 125 years, the Grecians have been rooted at St James Park, our home with all its quirks and idiosyncrasies.

You don’t need me to remind you about the good and bad times the club has gone through but throughout the 125 years our wonderful supporters continued to turn up. They travelled away. They stood in the rain. They sang when there was little to sing about. They bought programmes, club merchandise, raffle tickets and rattled buckets. They volunteered. They raised money. They encouraged their children and grandchildren to fall in love with the club.

When Exeter City needed its community, the community answered and I thank every single one of them, because simply without that community, we would not have the club that is Exeter City FC today. I’m proud that relationship is perhaps the greatest achievement of the club’s 125 year history.

Football clubs often talk about community, but at Exeter City the connection runs deep. The club is part of the social fabric of the city – a meeting place, a shared identity and a source of pride. The work that Exeter City Community Trust does in our community and beyond reaches beyond the ninety minutes on a Saturday afternoon, touching the lives of young people, families, schools, charities and countless individuals who may never pull on the red and white themselves.

Our women’s team sits proudly in the third tier of the women’s pyramid, inspiring young children across the county while engaging with people who may have never considered football as a passion. They are celebrating their own 25th anniversary and are very much apart of the fabric of this club, something we will continue to cherish and protect.

The Supporters Trust ownership model is a powerful expression of the belief that Exeter City belongs to the people who care about it. It reflects an understanding that the club’s value cannot simply be measured in league positions, transfer fees or balance sheets.

Its real value is measured in people. Think of the child walking through the turnstiles for the first time. Think of the lifelong supporter who has witnessed decades of highs and lows. Think of the former player who still looks back with affection on theirtime in Exeter. Think of the volunteer who gave years of their life to the club because they just want to help. Think of the families who have made St James Park part of their lives. Those are the threads that make up the fabric of Exeter City.

And 125 years provides a wonderful opportunity to celebrate every one of them.

Peter Ferlie, Exeter City Supporters’ Trust Chair, September 2026