There has been a lot of speculation about whether the credit crunch will hit a leading Premiership club, but it may be non-league clubs that will be first in the firing line. The sums involved are smaller, but such clubs are often dependent on the patronage of local businesses. Smaller businesses are very reliant on cash flow and banks are reluctant in present circumstances to cut their overdrafts or give them new loans. A number of non-league clubs are currently facing difficulties.
There has been a lot of speculation about whether the credit crunch will hit a leading Premiership club, but it may be non-league clubs that will be first in the firing line. The sums involved are smaller, but such clubs are often dependent on the patronage of local businesses. Smaller businesses are very reliant on cash flow and banks are reluctant in present circumstances to cut their overdrafts or give them new loans. A number of non-league clubs are currently facing difficulties. In the Conference, former top flight club Oxford United have seen their chairman Nick Merry stepping down. Kelvin Thomas came over from Florida to take over, followed by admissions of serious short-term financial difficulty. One problem is that the club do not own their stadium, which belongs to the former owner after whom it is named, and making the quarterly rent payments is sometimes a stretch. Salisbury should be big enough to support a Conference club, but they have had to try and raise £100,000 in a fortnight from supporters with local businesses asked to chip in with £1,000 each. The club budgeted for gates of 1,550, but they are down by 350.
In the British Gas Business League (aka the Southern League) Merthyr Tydfil have escaped a threatened winding up. They have paid off their £22,000 Inland Revenue bill. The directors had to dig into their pockets. Cambridge City have done a deal which will enable them to maintain rent free at their Milton Road ground until the end of the 2010 season and haven’t given up hope of staying there permanently. An earlier phase of the saga involved the club in a lot of litigation. In the Ryman League, Margate have been granted a breathing space in their fight against administration. HM Revenue and Customs threatened to wind them up over an unpaid tax bill. Now they have got until November 26th to solve their financial problems and are confident of getting the money.