IF former Manchester United manager Alex Ferguson is stuck for things to do following his retirement after 27 years with the club - then Swansea Council has a few ideas for him.
The authority has put up comic strip posters in Manchester Victoria Railway Station encouraging fans to spend some 'Fergie Time' in Swansea Bay this weekend.
The posters play on the term Fergie Time, often used by some in football circles to describe the additional time at the end of matches they felt Manchester United would get to score at home because of Sir Alex's influence.
And the posters in Manchester show meticulous tactical planning for Saturday's Liberty Stadium match on one half, and then an image which suggests that Sir Alex Ferguson could be relaxing on a Gower beach on the other. The posters are part of Swansea Council's 'Make a holiday last a lifetime' campaign this Premier League season, which sees them target Premier League fans of away teams to encourage them to spend more time — and money — in Swansea, when visiting to watch their clubs take on the Swans. Nick Bradley, cabinet member for regeneration, said: "There's going to be enormous interest in this match. Not only are the Swans due to host one of the world's biggest clubs in their Premier League opener, but it's also David Moyes' first league match in charge of Manchester United. This means the eyes of the world are going to be on Swansea Bay once again.
"Matches of this magnitude offer a terrific chance to further put Swansea Bay on the map and attract many thousands of visitors here. Our tourism team has done a terrific job since the Swans reached the Premier League by making the most of the status to promote Swansea Bay, but we're determined to raise the bar even further this coming season."
Other football-related graphics have been used to promote Swansea Bay since the Swans were promoted to the Premier League.
Since their use, Visit Swansea Bay's Facebook fans have increased by nearly 270 per cent to more than 39,000, while their Twitter following has risen by 87 per cent to over 4,450. Promotional graphics were viewed over 5,700 times in the 2012/2013 season — an average of 820 views per graphic.
The comic strip graphic has been sent onto prominent football journalists and fan sites across the UK too. It's also been shared on Facebook and Twitter and included on the official www.visitswanseabay.com destination website.
