Scarborough Athletic Confirm Appeal To 'Stay Competitive'

The football club have revealed a new fund to help stabilise them financially while playing at Bridlington Town FC for the coming season.

The Board of Directors at Scarborough Athletic Football Club have provided an update on plans for a proposed ground share at Bridlington following the discovery of structural issues with the 3G pitch at Scarborough Sports Village.

Repairs to the Scarborough ground could take around 40 weeks making Scarborough Athletic's home ground unavailable for much of next season.

In an update to fans released on Friday the Boro Board say that progress is being made on the arrangements and they have also been considering the financial implications on the club and the playing budget.

'Over the last few weeks, the club has been working hard to secure a temporary venue to host “home” games which will ensure we are able to continue operating in the National League. 

As previously announced work is now ongoing to prepare the Mounting Systems Stadium at Bridlington for Step 2 compliance and to prepare a groundshare agreement which will be subject to the approval of both the National League and Northern Premier League.

Alongside this work the Board have been assessing the inevitable financial impact of this move and how, as a fan owned club, we can continue to achieve our stated mission to “play at the highest level of football possible while operating in a prudent financial framework”.

Having listened to our co-owners, supporters and sponsors we believe there is a clear drive from all involved to protect the integrity of the club by remaining as competitive as possible and ensuring that the hard work of the past 17 years is not undone.

In regards to the first part of our mission statement the Board have signalled a clear intent to maintain the budget as far as possible and are hopeful that the player announcements made this week clearly demonstrate our desire to remain competitive during our, yet to be defined, period away from the SSV to ensure that we return, not only having survived, but in as strong a position as possible.

Given that there will clearly be some impact and uncertainty around income streams we now need everyone’s help to ensure we remain true to our mission and fan owned ethos and achieve this in a financially prudent and sustainable way.

On a daily basis supporters have been asking us “how can we help?” and today we are able to announce two early opportunities which will hopefully allow as many people as possible to contribute financially at this challenging time.

We will today be putting Season Tickets on sale for the forthcoming season, while the period of time we will be away from the SSV is unknown we would ask as many supporters as possible to buy a Season Ticket this year. This income stream is extremely important to the club and gives an early boost to our cashflow position and a level of certainty that will be vital in planning our season.

We are able to announce that Season Ticket and admission prices will remain frozen and in line with last season and a separate communication will follow with details of how these can be purchased later today.

We would also like to inform you that we are working with various parties on strategies to hopefully assist everyone in making the 17-mile trip from the SSV to Queensgate on match days to maximise attendances and reduce the burden on our supporters.

The Board have been overwhelmed by the offers of potential financial support we have received from so many people, these have prompted us to identify a clear need to establish a focussed campaign, for those that are willing and able, to donate in addition to the already fantastic support we receive through participation in our normal activities.

We would therefore like to announce the introduction of a new “No Battle No Victory” fund.

We believe this fund is one great way for us to demonstrate the collective power of our fan-owned, community club and hope that by giving as many people as possible the chance to make an additional contribution we can achieve the club’s aims while remaining financially prudent. While our fan owned club operates in a financially sustainable manner and has no debt, it is not cash rich and therefore a key component of financial planning through these uncertain times will be a regular and reliable income.

We are therefore asking as many of our co-owners, supporters and wider community, if they are able, to set up a regular donation of £20 per month into this fund which will be incredibly important in ensuring the club can survive and operate in line with its stated aims. A separate communication will follow shortly which will include all the details you need to help you make this fantastic gesture.

The Board realises that the above specific appeals to buy a season ticket and/or commit to donations may not be accessible to all and we will be continuing to work hard to ensure that everyone in our club and community is included and we will be working on other initiatives both to raise funds and to help our fanbase support us at Bridlington. We will also be reaching out to our valued sponsors in the very near future to ensure that we meet this challenge collectively and demonstrate that as a club and community we are all “in this together”.'