Peterhead cut 29 jobs as club make plea to let fans into SPFL grounds

Peterhead FC have announced 29 jobs have been cut at Balmoor with football continuing to be played without crowds.

Occasional and part-time staff have been cut at the League One club. Picture: Michael Gillen.

The Blue Toon will make part-time and occasional staff redundant when the Government Furlough scheme ends on Friday.

The League One club detailed the “catastrophic impact” of Covid-19 and games being played behind closed doors at Balmoor with no gate or hospitality income forcing their hand, despite cash from James Anderson and the SPFL Trust which could not be used to maintain the workforce – many of whom, it said, are single parents.

It appealed to the SPFL and SFA to lobby the Scottish Government on the impact playing without fans is having on communities and clubs and avoid “further devastation by their demise and ultimate disappearance altogether.”

In normal circumstances Peterhead would have expected bumper travelling supports this season from the likes of Partick Thistle and Falkirk. Picture: Michael Gillen.

The club’s statement read: “Despite matches having resumed behind closed doors at the beginning of this month, the fact that there are no fans and no match day hospitality at games has placed serious financial constraints on the club. The facilities at Balmoor operate normally seven days a week with meeting and function rooms hired on a daily basis. With the exception of the new and innovative coffee shop running on reduced hours and a skeleton staff, the stark reality is that there is no work for the vast majority of our dedicated team.

“Many of those affected are single parents who rely on their jobs with the club to supplement their income and in many cases their jobs provide the only social interaction they have outside the family home. There are also a number of instances where more than one family member from the same household will be impacted.

“Everyone at the club has taken their share of the financial cut-backs over the recent months including the players, senior staff and management. The club are indebted to everyone who has helped to shoulder the financial burden and the decision has only been made after a great deal consideration and deliberation, after every other alternative option had been explored.

“Peterhead FC urge the Scottish football authorities to make further representation to the Scottish Government to address the serious financial implications of playing behind closed doors for lower league clubs before we start seeing communities throughout the country subjected to further devastation by their demise and ultimate disappearance altogether.”