Fulham kick off a new football season, in June

Fulham 3 NSI Runavik 0. Wimbledon is still in progress, the England cricket team are yet to play India in the summer's main match-up and the Tour de France hasn't even begun - but the new football season is already underway.

Martin Jol took his bow as Fulham manager on the final day of June as the Cottagers began their Europa League qualifying campaign with a 3-0 victory over NSI Runavik of the Faroe Islands at Craven Cottage, a mere 39 days after the end of the 2010/11 season.

Some 14,000 fans made the trip to Craven Cottage to watch the game in evening sunshine. There was even a band of around 30 supporters from the shipping village of Runavik in the Faroes.

The early start to the season is the price Fulham are paying for their good manners last term. Their fair play record earned them a place in the qualifying stages of the Europa League, despite the best efforts of Zoltan Gera, who picked up a red card in the final game of the season against Arsenal and almost lost them the berth in Europe.

However, if Fulham are to repeat the feat of 2010 and make the final of the competition then they will have to play 23 games, that is on top of the 38 league matches and domestic cup ties they are already comitted to. It could be a very long season.

But Martin Jol sent out an experienced team for his first game as Fulham boss and the likes of Brede Hangeland, Danny Murphy, Bobby Zamora and Andy Johnson were far too good for the visiting part-timers. The goals came from Damien Duff, Murphy (who converted a penalty) and Johnson.

The return fixture is next week, but Jol appears unconcerned about the impact of starting a campaign in June.

"The other clubs will be playing their first friendlies in a few days so I don't think this made much difference," he said. ·