ERIC Whalley is cracking open the champagne after discovering Accrington Stanley's fixture fate for the forthcoming season.

Chairman Whalley admitted he was disappointed not to start the Reds' inaugural season in the top tier of non-league football with a showpiece home fixture.

Fellow former Football League outfit Aldershot will host the Reds when the Conference season kicks off on Saturday, August 9.

But the rest of Stanley's schedule has whetted Whalley's appetite for what he hopes will be a a memorable Crown Ground campaign.

The Reds' supremo beamed: "I'm very happy with the fixtures overall, and seeing them in black and white at last will give everyone a boost.

"I feel a little disappointed that we don't start with a home game because that would have been a nice reward for the fans.

"But after travelling to Aldershot, we have two home games within a week to bed in, first against Leigh RMI and then to Shrewsbury.

"They will provide a stern test and the Shrewsbury game, especially, will be a good benchmark of the kind of attendances we can expect.

"Looking down the list, we also only have two games away from home in midweek and they are at Halifax and Chester, which doesn't involve too much travel for the fans."

A particular highlight for Whalley will be the Christmas and New Year double-header against Lancashire rivals Morecambe - the team he used to manage.

He added: "They will be two fantastic games and it's great to see them scheduled when fans can turn out in force.

"I still know a lot of people behind the scenes there and it will be great to meet up with some old faces again."

Stanley's end-of-season fate could yet be decided with a gruelling trip to face Exeter in an eerie mirror-image of the worst moment in the club's history.

The Reds' were scheduled to play the Grecians in the final game of the 1962 season, only to prematurely resign from the Football League before fulfilling their fixtures.

This time however, it is the Devon club who find themselves in financial turmoil, with the very realistic threat of being forced into administration and having a whopping 12-point penalty hanging over them.

Whalley said: "It's an unbelievable coincidence and strange that the boot is now on the other foot.

"They have a very big problem to solve and 12 points would be a massive gap to try and make up on the other teams.

"But the Conference have decided to take the bull by the horns and if that is the penalty, so be it."