Exeter City FC fans return to Andros, Greece, for annual trip
The annual trip for the Exeter Exiles - a dedicated group of Exeter City FC supporters who mainly live and work in London - left for the Greek island of Andros on Wednesday evening.
Neil Le Milliere, who was recently crowned NPower Fan of the Year in the Football League Awards, says "We were originally invited over in 2007 to combine a holiday on an idyllic Greek island with a game of football against the locals, and a number of us went over not really knowing what to expect."
There are now about 100 members of the Greek Exeter City FC fan club on the Island of Andros called "Greek Grecians Fans Connection" (GGFC) with 100 more all over Greece.
Neil continues, "The island itself is only reachable by ferry, so the group get a plane to Athens airport then a bus down to the port and the ferry over to the island, which makes the whole trip an adventure itself.
"The islanders welcome us with open arms, not least because the high season for them is July and August when Athenians flock to the island, so a group of visitors in May/June are very welcome. Various restaurants, bars and jewellers even put on special evenings for us."
A welcome party is planned for Saturday 25 May with free food and drink, while the game itself will be played on Sunday at 6pm. The game is set up by Dinos Papachristos who runs FC Ydrousa the football team on Andros, which has a Ladies team Boys team and full team and all follow EXETER.
"The Exeter Exiles are a group of Exeter City supporters, formed in London in the early 1990s. We're still at our strongest in the capital - and the majority of us are London Grecians - but our membership of over 150 City fans is spread far and wide."
The group's main role is to keep exiled Grecians in touch with Exeter City. They do this both figuratively, through weekly news emails, and literally, by offering travel, (usually by rail), from London to pretty much every Exeter City match.
There is a small annual membership fee, currently £10, which helps to keep the Exiles running smoothly and enables them to offer financial backing to Exeter City and the Supporters' Trust.
The Exiles have a representative on the Board of Society of the Exeter City Supporters’ Trust. The Trust is the majority shareholder of Exeter City FC and the organisation which leads the football club – a unique model in the Football League and a glorious success story.
The Exeter Exiles also administer The 1931 Fund, which was set-up in 2009 to finance an additional member of Paul Tisdale's Exeter City squad. The fund currently pays the wages of forward player Elliott Chamberlain. The Fund collects £19 per month from around 60 City supporters – most exiled from Devon’s fair city and many of whom are Exeter Exiles members.
If you would like further information about the Exeter Exiles click here.
