Coronavirus: How the government can help Hawks and other National League teams come through Covid-19 pandemic
The Hawks and other teams at National League level will need the government to step in if they are to survive the coronavirus epidemic.
That is the view of Dagenham & Redbridge managing director Steve Thompson, who believes a bailout will be required for clubs in the non-league pyramid.
The Covid-19 pandemic has caused havoc in the English game, with the FA introducing a blanket football ban for the foreseeable future earlier this week.
It could leave clubs at non-league level facing financial ruin with contracted players and staff still to be paid with little or no revenue being generated.
Earlier in the week, Hawks director Trevor Brock warned that 'half of the teams in the National League South could go out of business within two months' in the wake of the Covid-19 outbreak.
He told The News: ‘The key thing for clubs at our level is we’ve still got players on contract being paid.
‘If your sources of income have gone away, most clubs at our level and below that have contracted players work on the fact they’re playing games and fundraising.
‘If all that stops for you, as things go, you’ve still got the outgoings without the incomings.
‘We’re going to have to take a decision on that in the coming days.
‘The FA are still telling us at the moment we’ve got to pay them.
‘It’s all very well saying ‘let’s stop football’, but how do you suppose we make up the shortfall?
‘Every club in National League South, I would say half the league, will go bust within two months - it’s that close to the wire.’
The Daggers managing director Thompson, whose team play in the National League, is of a similar view to Brock given the current situation.
He believes the government must now step in and offer a bailout for teams in the non-league pyramid.
‘It is going to require government help,’ he told the PA news agency.
‘The biggest worry is that so many non-league clubs, not just in the National League, they are integral parts of their community, the fabric of their community.
‘It worries me if these clubs are lost, what will happen going forward.
‘A case is being made through the Football Association.
‘We need to be in line with the Premier League, the EFL and the FA.
‘There needs to be a concentrated effort.
‘I don't think we can expect a bailout from the Premier League or FA, so it needs to be government led and I think the government realises that when we do eventually get through this, non-league clubs and League One and League Two clubs are going to be part of the fightback for our communities.
‘I think that is recognised, exactly how that support can be given I don't know.’