This is the brutal reality of what North East non-league clubs are facing up to
Non-league football clubs around the country are facing an uphill battle and they need support more than ever. So, there are essential questions that must be asked of the Football Association and the people at the top end of the game we all love.
Why are the authorities offering these clubs so little in their time of need?
Why does it seem that there is no understanding of the pressures of running a nonleague club in a time of crisis?
Why has there been a lack of clear and consistent communication from the decisionmakers?
Why are clubs being forced to make difficult decisions without the benefit of support from those in charge of our national game?
Ashington have enjoyed a very promising opening to the season and their young, vibrant side have been one of the highlights of the Northern League so far.
Ian Skinner, his management team and the Colliers committee deserve credit for turning the club around on and off the pitch over the last two years.
And that is why their decision to withdraw from this season’s FA Vase is as heartbreaking as it was understandable.
Quite simply, the club has been put in a position it should have never been in.
A quick read of the Ashington club statement released on Wednesday morning gives more than a hint of the anguish and disappointment caused in making the decision – but the club felt that they had to protect the physical and financial welfare of their players and staff.
After all, we should not forget that players in steps three to seven primarily rely on employment away from football as their primary source of income.
The welfare and stability of clubs is of equal importance and Vase ties across the North East will go ahead this weekend without supporters in attendance.
The Football Association are asking clubs in tier three areas such as the North East to host ties in their national competition without the vital income provided by people walking through the turnstiles.
With player wages, travel expenses and utility bills to pay once a game goes ahead, clubs will be desperately short of the finance needed to meet all those costs.
The FA will say that they have given all club’s the option to withdraw from the prestigious competition – but that is a decision that no club should have to make.
It is a time for strong leadership and understanding of the severity of the situation that is facing clubs that are largely run by volunteers.
I have said for a while on my own social media that it is time for the governing body to take the decisions out of the hands of the clubs.
Players at steps three to seven will be facing an almost unprecedented number of fixtures after Christmas and, once again, their welfare must be put first.
Rather than giving the option to withdraw from cup competitions, why not cancel this year’s FA Vase, FA Trophy and all county cup competitions?
Perhaps the time has come to look at options to extend the season into June in order to allow clubs to complete their league fixtures.
That may well mean a later start to the 2021-22 season and a rethink may be needed over several cup competitions in order to give clubs a sensible schedule to contend with.
But a later start would also work for the Football Association as it would give them additional time to complete their restructure of the non-league pyramid that was set to take place last summer.
Although the on-field issues can be resolved with effective decision-making, the financial impact of Covid-19 will have a longer-lasting impact on clubs and their local communities.
The financial strain has only increased as the battle with the epidemic has continued and it is making an impact at every level of the game.
Even in the National League’s three divisions, where National Lottery funding has been received, clubs are still facing an uphill battle.
But the funding on offer to clubs below step two of the pyramid has been minimal and there is a feeling that they are fighting this battle alone.
There has been talk of funding arriving in the coming weeks – but there has been a strong suggestion that the majority of that will be in the form of a loan.
The last thing that clubs need is to burden themselves with more debt.
I’ve spoken to several chairmen at different levels of the game and you can sense their determination to ensure that their clubs remain in a strong position once we come through the other end of the pandemic.
They are working day and night to resolve the ever-increasing issues that they are facing with each passing week.
But some of the terminology they are using just shows that, beneath all of that determination and resolve, they know that they are up against it more than ever.
I’ve heard comments about clubs “dying a slow death” and “being largely ignored in favour of those higher up the pyramid”.
South Shields chairman Geoff Thompson has suggested that the pyramid has become “truncated” over the last year.
And one other senior figure at a club has suggested that “rather than trying to survive a relegation battle, they are merely trying to survive the season”.
That is the brutal reality of what non-league clubs around the North East are facing.
It is time for the guardians of the game to step up and truly live up to that tag.