Covid-19’s Impact on Potters Bar Crusaders
Written by Alex Smith
Covid-19 has had an impact on every aspect of life this year - including sport. At the top of the football pyramid, thousands of fans haven’t been able to attend stadiums. However, it’s the lower league and grassroots level clubs that have been affected much more.
Compared to the riches of the Premier League, these clubs rely on income from fans and members. There is with no lucrative TV rights deal, no owner worth millions of pounds backing them and, in many cases, it’s just volunteers giving up their time.
The country has now been through two lockdowns with many organisations now struggling to survive financially. Local businesses – ones that are so often the heartbeat of local communities - have found it especially difficult to stay solvent amidst complex furlough schemes and a lack of government support.
One example of a business at the heart of a community that is struggling to survive, are the sports and social clubs around the UK. Take, for example, Potters Bar Crusaders.
The Crusaders
Potters Bar Crusaders Sports Club was founded in 1948. The club is divided into sections of youth football, darts, and golf; all are supported by a large social membership.
Additionally, they have a large newly redeveloped clubhouse suitable for the size of the club, which includes a bar, garden area, snooker tables over looking the football pitches and a large seating area.
Despite having a football section with 19 teams of youth football (including girls teams) and in excess of 500 members across the entire club, this year the Crusaders have faced insolvency due to the pandemic.
The clubhouse bar
A Crusaders Team celebrate
Snooker tables upstairs in the clubhouse
Coronavirus left the club in a “dire” financial situation
The Crusaders’ chairman, Paul Iwasyszyn, said: “When we were at rock bottom, we had only £600 in the kitty.” For context, the club needs “to have an income of £1000 a month in order to keep our heads above water, even when the club is closed.”
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Iwasyszyn is a life member at the club and took over the chairmanship four years ago. "Since then a lot of new blood has been brought into the Committee and the running of the club has been injected with new life and vigour."
In an attempt to raise finances an email was written to all members alerting them that they had no source of income and that the club’s bank balance had fallen to an all time low. It read: “It is with extreme sadness that we write to you … Covid-19 has had a catastrophic effect on the finances of our club and we are staring insolvency in the face… Our faithful members and friends. We need your help!”
The club’s committee set up a fund raising page and asked for anybody to donate what they could to help the Crusaders survive.
Club steward, Paul Butterworth, has been a member of the club for “25 years, maybe even longer” and took the role as steward three years ago due to his background in running pubs and similar businesses.
He explained that they have not been charging members while the club has been closed this year. Fortunately, he says, “most of the members have still said we will give you the money anyway which is fantastic. We didn't feel comfortable asking for it as it wouldn't have been fair and proper.”
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The goodwill of the club’s members, as well as the successful applications of two grants worth a combined £5,500, has kept the club alive. “To be fair if it hadn't been for the grants we've already got we would not be here I don't think,” said Butterworth.
Letters were also written to people who might be able to save the Crusaders, “we wrote to various people like company directors, Elton John and Rod Stewart and to people involved in Spurs, Watford and Arsenal, because they're relatively local clubs,” said Iwasyszyn. “We didn't get a response from any of those, not even a letter of acknowledgement which was a great shame.”
Chairman, Paul Iwasyszyn (left) and Club Steward, Paul Butterworth (right)
Can football’s elite do more?
Clubs in the EFL are working with the Premier League to try to secure a ‘bailout’ to keep those club’s alive. Recently, there have also been proposals to reform football in England.
‘Project Big Picture’ was rejected by Premier League clubs (mainly due to clubs having to give up their ‘power’ to supposed ‘bigger clubs’) and a manifesto called ‘Our Beautiful Game’, backed by ex-pro and TV pundit Gary Neville, aims to revise the structure of English football and spread the money in the game more fairly, as far down as grassroots level. Currently, the Premier League has a yearly revenue of £5.6bn. Many believe it’s time to see some more of this money invested in grassroots football and education.
“From a football side of it I think it’s a difficult one because everyone is struggling,” says Butterworth. “I know the crowds are back in but even then that’s 2000 they're allowed in, they’re still going to be losing money by the time they put stewards in and everything else.”
He continued: “I think grassroots football has probably been wanting support long before Covid-19 came about. It's always been the same, the FA sit up there with god knows what and the Premier League and the Championship even. But when you get down below that you're then looking at some of the equipment they use here. It’s not the newest its not the best, our playing fields aren't the best.”
The view out from the upstairs of the clubhouse over the astorturf and grass football pitches behind.
There has not been much football for Potters Bar Crusaders for around a year now. At the end of 2019/beginning of 2020, many games were being called off due to waterlogged pitches then lockdown began in March. Training has also been a problem due to the forever changing rules put in place around grassroots football. There was a stage where, “you could go to training but you're not allowed physical contact. Well that’s like trying to herd cats when you've got 5 or 6 year olds out there,” exclaims Butterworth.
The Future Looks Brighter
With some of the first coronavirus vaccines taking place in the UK, there is hope the pandemic will be over soon and businesses can look to re-build.
While the club has been closed the Crusaders took the opportunity to do some redevelopment work to the clubhouse.
“If there are positives to come out of lockdown, I suppose one of them is that we managed to refurbish the place for virtually zero cost really, we’re pretty much good to go once the pandemic sorted,” said Butterworth.
He explained, “the only costs were materials, paint and stuff like that but everybody who done the work, done it for free. The decorating, the new ladies toilet, plumbing, flooring, and all the electrics were done for free. Everyone during the first lockdown sort of chipped in and gave their time for free which isn't a problem for the likes of me because I was furloughed but some of the guys, were still working but still came in.”
The club's roll of honour board located above the bar.
“The generosity of the tradesman contributed to the upgrading of the club is very symptomatic of the willingness of members to contribute and to work towards the fabric of the club, we’re very appreciative of that,” said Iwasyszyn.
The clubhouse makes most of their money from private hire events such as birthday parties. “We’re pretty much good to go once the pandemic sorted,” said Butterworth. Meanwhile, the committee have come up with the potential idea of a Christmas Market to keep members engaged and increase funds.
However, Iwasyszyn admits there will be consequences to come, “it has long term repercussions for the economy and for society in general that’s the reality.” Similarly Butterworth says, “the government and local authorities have done as much as they can do. I suppose the worrying thing is for future generations - who pays for all this because all this money gone out through Covid-19, unfortunately at some point, they're going to want it back.”
The club's garden area
The Crusaders' trophy cabinet
The view overlooking the garden and astroturf pitch
For more information on Potters Bar Crusaders visit the club’s website - https://www.pbcrusaders.org.uk/