CRAWLEY Town will play their first game as a full-time outfit at KitKat Crescent tomorrow afternoon.

The West Sussex side have made the switch from part-time football after a takeover by the SA Group, who own a collection of bars, nightclubs, restaurants, off-licences, convenience stores and a publishing company.

Crawley's new owners have agreed to invest £2million into the club over the next three years and will make £100,000 available for next season's summer transfer window.

Manager Francis Vines has already been busy recruiting new players over the summer at the Broadfield Ground, which boasted an average attendance of more than 2,000 during Town's first Conference campaign.

Seven new signings have been made including summer York City trialist Danny Ekoku, who opted for a move back to his southern roots after Crawley scouted the pre-season KitKat Crescent clash against Sheffield Wednesday.

Former Darlington and Farnborough midfielder Richard Hodgson is another new arrival after a spell in Malaysia, while winger Lee Elam has been recruited from Morecambe and utility man Chris Giles has left Aldershot to sign for Crawley.

Midfielders Danny Brown and Lee Blackburn, formerly with Barnet and Cambridge United respectively, are other new faces, along with ex-Oxford United defender David Woozley and striker Jamie Cade, who has joined from Colchester.

Updated: 11:39 Friday, August 12, 2005