The 2023-24 Isle of Man football season officially gets underway this weekend with the Eric Fletcher Charity Shield.

The traditional curtain-raiser pits last year’s Canada Life Premier League champions Peel against runners-up Corinthians in a match that will be played at the Bowl, kicking off at 1.45pm.

The westerners ended their 21-year wait for a top flight title as they romped to the championship during 2022-23, finishing the campaign 11 points clear of Corinthians.

In the cup competitions though, it was the Whites who had the edge as they won both the FA Cup and Railway Cup, beating Peel by a single goal in both finals to complete a double success.

The close nature of those scorelines suggests that this Saturday’s Charity Shield showdown will be another tight contest.

But, as is often the case at this point of the summer, much is unknown regarding player ins and outs/transfers ahead of the new season.

Peel will be hoping that last year’s Isle of Man FA Player of the Year Rhys Oates can put his injury problems behind him, having missed most of the second half of last season.

With the likes of goalkeeper Adam Killey and midfielder Danny Gerrard in the FC Isle of Man squad during the early throes of the Ravens’ fledgling North West Counties Premier Division campaign, it will be interesting to see how Corinthians line up in the weeks and months ahead.

This Saturday’s game kicks off at 1.45pm at the Bowl.

The 2023-24 Isle of Man league season will then fire into life two weeks later on Saturday, September 2 will a full programme of fixtures across the four divisions.