The National League has confirmed how it will split a £10 million rescue package between its 66 members – and some clubs feel they have been left short.
The first payments of the initial three-month grant, which are coming from the National Lottery, are scheduled to arrive next week.
The money has been distributed on an average attendance basis with Chesterfield, Hartlepool United, Notts County, Stockport County, Torquay United, Wrexham and Yeovil Town set to receive £95,000 a month, with the 16 other National League clubs receiving £84,000.
In National League North and South, Chester, Dulwich Hamlet, Hereford, Maidstone United and York City will receive £36,000 a month and the other clubs will get £30,000 a month.
It has left some of the more well-supported clubs at Steps 1 and 2 feeling the amount they are getting is not enough to cover the income they would have gained from their attendances.
For instance, York City averaged a crowd of 2,705 last season and will receive £108,000 of the government money over the next three months.
Boreham Wood had 724 on average through their gates and will recoup £252,000.
Hereford, who averaged 2,047 last season, have voiced their concerns. Chairman Andrew Graham said: “The board are urgently assessing the ramifications to the Club. Naturally £36,000 is a welcome grant in the current climate but it does not cover a Club as substantial as ours.
“A board meeting has been convened to discuss the implications of this. We are disappointed at the lack of engagement for member clubs in the determination of grant allocations.”
Chester joint-boss Anthony Johnson believes some clubs have been ‘stitched up’.
Some clubs in our league will actually be MILES BETTER OFF from the slice of the funding they’ll receive whilst the better supported ones, the fan owned ones, the ones who rely on people actually coming through the gates, the ones who live within their means have been stitched up
— Anthony Johnson (@amjonno) October 21, 2020
More on this in Sunday’s Non-League Paper
