If the sprinklers came on we couldn’t flush the toilets!
ACCRINGTON OWNER ANDY HOLT ON LIFE IN FOOTBALL’S BASEMENT
‘Accrington is like a time capsule... it’s what football has lost’
The sound of sawing almost drowns out Accrington Stanley owner Andy holt as he explains the financial perils of the close season in the Football League’s basement.
A volunteer is touching up some skirting around the Wham Stadium while holt describes the realities of operating on a budget of £15,000 a week. Manchester United’s Paul Pogba earns that every 11 hours.
The long summer months mean no home matches and therefore no income at a club who turn over just £2million a year — less than one per cent of the £220m spent by Manchester City already this summer.
This is life in the ‘time capsule’ of Accrington Stanley, one of the 12 founding members of the Football League who averaged gates of just 1,699 in League Two last season.
‘It’s a period where you’ve got full wages and zero income,’ holt explains. ‘You’ve got a big headache. I reckon we’ll lose £300,000 a year no matter what we do, and that’s a systemic problem. everything we do at the club is to mitigate that.’
In May 2016, one of the biggest games in Stanley’s history — a 2-2 draw against AFC Wimbledon in the League Two play- off semifinal — was suspended for 10 minutes owing to floodlight failure. A substituted player went for a shower and tripped the electrics.
holt said: ‘Last pre-season we had absolutely no income because after that game we had to dig the pitch up. We lost five games on the trot that year for flooding, which is a world record! That was a disaster.
‘But this year has been a vast improvement. We’ve got the facilities working, so fans can go to the toilet and wash their hands like you can at normal clubs.
‘here, if the sprinklers came on at half-time you couldn’t flush the toilets. The water main wasn’t big enough. We’ve put a new water main in — that’s £150,000. The drains were another £200,000. A new £100,000 power supply is to come.’
holt is wary of football’s class divide and spoke out after
Sportsmail’s revelations of Mino Raiola’s £41million fee as part of Pogba’s world-record £89m move to Manchester United.
he called out the Premier League, who responded by asking if Accrington still wanted the solidarity payments, in the region of of £430,000, that are handed down the divisions.
But holt has no intention of backing down, even as the chasm between the super-rich Premier Leagues haves and the struggling have-nots gets ever wider.
‘Whoever put that out would’ve been sacked if they worked for me,’ hold added.
‘It was a crazy thing to do. My comments about the agent would’ve died a death had they not made those threats. We turn over £2m and haven’t got a pot to p*** in. You can’t have the Premier League bullying the smallest club of the 92, can you?
‘With the money you’re holding a tiger by the tail and until someone else grabs the tail you can’t let go because the head will come round and bite you.
‘This is how a club should be. I went to an end-of-season awards at Manchester United once. The players were on a table surrounded by security and my little lad couldn’t go near them. What’s that? Get me out of here.
‘ There’s no point, really. Accrington is like a time capsule. It’s what football has lost.’
half of Accrington’s non-playing staff are a trio made up of holt, managing director David Burgess and commercial manager Daniel Bowerbank. Bill holden is the volunteer, a 73year-old who had to fix a leak in the club shop. This is a club for the community, run by the community.
‘There isn’t a town without the football club,’ Burgess, a former Lancashire FA chief executive, says. ‘It’s a way of life.’
holt, a local businessman who made his fortune in the plastics industry, readily admits he did not do enough due diligence before taking over two years ago.
Stanley were on their knees, with players going unpaid and directors, including Sportsmail’s David ‘Bumble’ Lloyd, ploughing money in to keep the club afloat.
The club took just £6,000 in sponsorship the year before holt arrived. ‘Lackadaisical,’ is the adjective used. But around £2m has been spent on improvements to the ground and there are plans for live entertainment next summer to boost income.
holt said: ‘I like what we do here for the town. The decision in 2015 was either let all that die or you have a go. There wasn’t a good option. Things have come on a lot and I’m really pleased. There isn’t a negative vibe here.’
Bowerbank was charged with finding ways of maximising attendances at a club who have the smallest crowds in the top four divisions. ‘You’ve got to be cute and inventive with the fanbase we’ve got,’ Bowerbank says. ‘We need fans to have paid for season tickets already, a fourgames-for-three offer on friendlies. We don’t want things last minute. We signed a two-year shirt deal with adidas. Our previous supplier Mitre, in my opinion, isn’t a League brand. Adidas is. It’s about associating yourself with the bigger names and we’re doing that with sponsorship. It gives Accrington a better name and makes the kids want to wear our kits.’
holt has recently discussed his issues with eFL chief executive Shaun harvey. ‘They are definitely listening,’ is the message from Accrington’s chairman.
‘There’s got to be a better balance of rules and finance to make life more liveable. I’m going to fight tooth and nail to make this club sustainable. Anyone in front of that is going to have to move over, because there’s no way I’m letting it go down.’