Shelbourne manager Alan Mathews is hoping to see more supporters visit Tolka Park as the Reds get ready for their return to Premier Division action.
Shels finished second in the First Division last season to secure a place in the top flight, and were also runners-up in the FAI Cup after losing to Sligo Rovers in a penalty shoot-out.
Sligo make the journey to Drumcondra on Friday night on the opening night of the new season and Mathews is hoping it is the beginning of a new dawn for Shels.
He told RTÉ: "It is a great situation to be in because we finished the season on a high by producing a good performance in the cup final. We got a lot of people, older Shelbourne people, to come back and go to the Aviva Stadium and get behind the team.
"We'd like to think that they will come along to the first game of the season. They could see something that they like and be happy with it and hopefully they come back again.
"It is a new situation for a lot of people for a lot of people who have only supported Shelbourne in the First Division. But it is also a situation where people have not supported the club and did go back to the Aviva Stadium.
"Pre-season has gone well but it all goes out the window come Friday night if you like because of our first game against Sligo and it is a great game to kick off with. It is a return to the cup final, it is in Tolka Park so bring it on.
"Hopefully we produce a brand of football that will get people coming back to Tolka Park, week-in and week-out, and the players continue to give a good account of themselves.
"You play Sligo, you play Bohs, you play Derry and you play Rovers. They are terrific games to be playing in. They are good if you do your stuff - they are not so good if you don't do your stuff and you let yourself down. The expectation and the pressure that's come when you're in the Premier Division - it is about producing performances against those kind of clubs."
It has taken five years for Shels to regain their place in the Premier Division and the former Drogheda United and Cork City boss is hoping that his squad match their level of performance from 2011 and maintain their spot.
"Our objective last year was quite clearly to achieve promotion. We feel that we left a couple of things behind us last year but that is gone. It was a great experience (FAI Cup final).
"The players deserve great credit for conducting themselves on and off the pitch in the manner that they did and we're really looking forward to the year ahead.
"We've added a few players to the squad and kept on board the bulk of last year's team. The entire XI that played in the FAI Cup final have been retained. We're looking forward to the season - it is going to be tough but we wanted to be back in this division.
"It is a huge jump and we're not going to kid ourselves. It is going to take us a little bit of time to get used to it. The pace and the tempo of the game is different and the expectation is going to be different.
"More importantly the players have to step up and accept this. That is what we have been talking about and working to achieve.
