Non-league clubs furlough squads and target players to appear for free
Non-league clubs are being forced to furlough first-team squads, with some trying to find players who will play for free to fulfil fixtures and avoid the threat of sanctions.
Maidstone United and Tonbridge Angels, of the National League South, the sixth tier of English football, have announced that their entire first-team squads have been placed on furlough in an attempt to cut costs during the pandemic. Both clubs are trying to make up teams with players who will not be paid, taking players on loan who are paid by their parent clubs and using under-23s and free agents. Two Maidstone first-team players have agreed to continue to play for free.
In the National League, which is just one step down from League Two, Dover Athletic have put their first-team squad on furlough and insisted they would not play another game because of a lack of funding.
A number of clubs are furious with the National League funding arrangements. All three divisions will vote on whether to continue the season or declare it null and void.
The Government agreed a £10million deal at the start of October so the season could start, but the second wave of funding is being offered in the form of loans rather than grants.
Contrary to the National League’s claims that loans were never mentioned, the Government insists that it was never agreed that further funding would always be in the form of grants.
Maidstone chief executive Bill Williams said: “To safeguard the club’s existence, the directors, with the support of the first-team manager, have been left with no option but to furlough contracted players and office staff to prevent the club becoming insolvent.
“The club agreed to start the 2020-21 season after funding reassurances from the National League and the government-negotiated grant, via Camelot, to compensate for lost gate revenues when supporters were not allowed to return that October.
“Due to the way the grant was allocated by the National League’s board of directors and with no contingency once the funding finished at the end of December, the club now have a significant revenue shortfall and are not prepared to gamble the future of this muchloved community asset by taking out a loan or mortgaging the stadium. Such action, at a time of continued uncertainty, would be a sticking plaster over a deep wound.”