BRAINTREE: Iron desperate for match to go ahead

BRAINTREE Town are desperate for their Blue Square South home game against play-off rivals Woking to go ahead on Saturday because the club could do with the gate money to help their cash flow.

The Iron, who last played on New Year's Day, are now averaging five games behind their closest rivals and the postponed games has put severe pressure on the club's day-to-day finances.

"It certainly hasn't made life easy for us going 29 days without any match income because the club still has to pay out running costs, including players' wages," said chairman Lee Harding. "We are no different than any other small business in that we need income to keep going.

"We are financially a well run club, stick to our budget for each season obviously banking on so many home games each season but when you lose them as we have it does put enormous pressure on cash flow."

Confirming that the directors have helped out by putting some of their own money to ease the situation he added: "Hopefully we'll get this Saturday's game, which is a big one for in terms of league position, and that will help us on the income front.

"If it's off and we have another run of bad weather then we will obviously have to take drastic action to make our budget fit just like any other business in such circumstances, but it's not come to that yet."

Harding though expects the game to go ahead and knows that the team look set to play 11 games over the next six weeks to try and catch up rival teams.

"Our board is not just down to relying on one man because we have a small but united and friendly group in charge, each with mutual respect and trust for one another and will all put their hand in their pockets to help out the club short term," he explained.

"We all pull together and we are very much a family working together with the same goal and that's seeing this club progress in the right manner and without running up debts as it appears many clubs are at our level.

"On the field both the manager Robbie Garvey and the players are obviously frustrated, particularly as rival clubs like Chelmsford City kept playing most of their games.

"We now want to get back in action."

On the latest rumours that Cambridge City are possibly looking to ground share at Cressing Road next season because they have to vacate their sold Milton Road ground, Harding said: "We are always prepared to help other clubs at our level if we can and we have spoken to them in the past about the idea, but currently there's been no further developments.

"I think ourselves or also Bishop's Stortford are a possibility because they have to look at alternatives with Histon not an option and neither is Cambridge United who already share their Abbey Stadium ground with a Ridgeons League side."

Meanwhile, Garvey is also concerned with the Woking game going ahead adding: "We obviously need to get playing again and what a stiff game it will be for restarting because they are doing well, and have just beaten another play-off rival, Dover.

"But we have everyone fit and are so desperate to play."