Crawley Town, who face Derby County in the FA Cup at home tonight, is often accused of being a moneybags club, buying its way to the Football League. But an in depth report suggests that the reality may be rather different.
Crawley Town, who face Derby County in the FA Cup at home tonight, is often accused of being a moneybags club, buying its way to the Football League. But an in depth report suggests that the reality may be rather different.
In fact in some respects the club seems to be marked by frugality. Wages are modest and well down the Blue Square pay scale. Players only get a pre-match meal for longer distance fixtures, otherwise they bring their own sandwiches. There is not even a coach provided for matches in the south-east of England.
So where does the reputation come from? In part from reports about colossal transfer fees for the non-league, but the club claims these are exaggerated, although it says that confidentiality considerations prevent it from giving the real figures.
Crawley was one of the first new towns built in a ring around London after the Second World War. Gatwick Airport is the main local employer and it’s a populated and prosperous area. The only downside is that it’s easy to reach Premiership clubs in London. But many fans will go to some of those games and also support a local non-league club.
Certainly, the home gate has doubled to 1,200 and continues to increase while the club has made £273,000 so far from its FA Cup run.