It's not just pitches – Junior club accounts are frozen, too

THE manager of one of the East Region's biggest clubs has underlined the financial challenge facing outfits as the Junior game stays in cold storage for another weekend.

While the snow may have cleared in some parts of the Lothians, most football pitches are still unplayable, with one chairman insisting it could be "another two or three weeks" before parts of West Lothian are back to normal.

The entire fixture list looks as though it will be wiped out again on Saturday, meaning that most teams will not have had a game since the middle of December.

"It is a real challenge for clubs," said Bonnyrigg Rose manager Alan Miller. "We have been reading recently that the SFA has been paying out money from a hardship fund but that has only gone to clubs that are full members.

"There's no help like that for clubs like ourselves and the bad weather is certainly having an impact because, even though there is no income coming in through the gate, we are having to pay for training facilities.

"We've only had three home games in the Super League this season and the longer this weather has an affect, the bigger the impact it is going to have on clubs."

The SFA money Miller is referring to was "discretionary payments" of 10,000 to clubs. "Everyone is aware that many clubs are under financial strain as we go through the global recession so it's especially pleasing that we're in a position to help clubs during this very tough economic climate," said chief executive Gordon Smith in announcing the payments. "We hope that these discretionary payments will help to make a difference as we look towards a more prosperous economic period."

According to David Roy, the Linlithgow Rose chairman, it would be asking too much for the SFA to also help out the 166 Junior clubs in the country.

"Even if they were to hand out 1,000 to each club, that is still a lot of money," said Roy. "You also have to remember that 50-60 per cent of the Junior clubs are run as amateurs with no wages being paid.

"The only impact they are going to feel from this bad weather is a build up of fixtures, but, in the case of the bigger clubs, they are definitely going to feel a jolt."

At Linlithgow, players are still being paid under the terms of their contracts, even though they haven't kicked a ball in anger since losing at home to Bathgate more than a month ago.

"It could be another two or three weeks before Junior football resumes in this part of the country," added Roy. "I wouldn't say it is desperate at the moment but, under the new system where players under contract still have to be played even though there are no games, it is something we are going to have to keep an eye on.

"Due to the World Cup being held this summer, I think the Association would like to have finished this season a bit earlier than normal and it may be the case that we look at the situation regarding some of the smaller Cups, although, come the end of March, we'll certainly have the scenario of clubs playing two games a week."