CORONAVIRUS is causing concerns throughout football, especially within the grassroots game, and people involved with three Bradford football clubs have been talking about the effects on their teams and the wider game.

A shocking report published by Utilita, a leading supporter of British football, has revealed that 10 per cent of grassroots clubs are fearing closure in a matter of months due to the pandemic.

The stats also reveal that clubs at grassroots level are losing 46 per cent of their income on average, with one in 10 losing more than 90 per cent of it.

Thackley chairman Ben Oliver said he fears more for clubs slightly higher up the pyramid, like Bradford (Park Avenue) and Guiseley, who have said fan attendance is financially imperative for them to be able to start their seasons.

But while up to 300 fans are currently able to attend games at Dennyfield, Oliver admits losing that income would create major headaches, and coronavirus cases are of course rising significantly in Leeds and Bradford.

He said: "Everybody's probably looking at the information coming out from the government and the FA.

"At Thackley, we're watching with interest and just trying to do our best to manage the situation, which is difficult.

"I don't think that's just in football, I think that's in any business. I'm a solicitor and I'm seeing it among my clients where they're having to manage a situation that's always changing.

"At our level I think we're slightly better insulated. We at Thackley have lower expenses, don't have players on contracts, like at Step 1 or Step 2, and we are allowed 300 fans in at the minute, when our average gate is probably only around 120 anyway.

"The issue we would get is if there is a blanket ban on supporters coming in. If that happens it's going to be very difficult, because that cuts off all our major income streams, gate receipts and bar takings etc.

"If it ever did come to that, the league would have to think hard about whether the season continues to a conclusion.

"From what we've put in place at Thackley, I feel we're fairly well insulated, if not completely out of the woods from what's going on.

"But I do worry for other teams, especially for Step 1 and 2 clubs like Guiseley, Avenue and Farsley, who still have no idea whether fans will come back in and whether they'll get a financial package that will help them in the right way if not.

"I do think it's going to be a challenging winter as well though. One of the things for us as a club is the rules on clubhouses and bars.

"We've just renovated ours and it was a big investment. We were open on Tuesday (for the home game with Albion) and had all the social distancing guidelines in place and sanitiser available.

"But the rules have changed since that fixture and now it's table service only. That cuts down the maximum occupancy in the clubhouse, so again it's just chipping away all the time at these potential income streams that we already do have.

"We still can't have functions there either. Somebody wants to have a wedding reception there next summer, but whether that will be able to take place we're not sure.

"We want to be out there marketing and we've got some potentially really big interest for a launch event for the clubhouse, but we can't deploy it because we can't encourage a gathering of that size.

"So it is challenging, and it's something we're monitoring on a daily, sometimes hourly basis. Everyone is keeping an eye on the news, any announcements, and that's the only thing we can do.

"But I don't think it's just football clubs, it's obviously a worldwide issue, and people and businesses across the board are affected. We're just trying to do the best we can."

Thackley did suffer severe financial problems a few years ago, before Oliver came into the club with some friends, and, along with the hard-working committee, helped save the day.

He is confident they can avoid the same fate again, even with a global pandemic raging.

He said: "What we did when we came in was we improved a lot of the processes. We’re lucky that we’ve got an experienced treasurer in Steve Paley. He really keeps an eye on the incomings and outgoings.

"Myself and my colleague on the committee, Mark Appleby, we set up a cashflow spreadsheet so we can see at all times where every penny is going.

"So Steve pays a bill, that’s added to the spreadsheet and it updates the balance automatically. When we have money coming in, likewise, he does the alternative calculations.

"We can really manage what we’re doing there and forecast ahead. At the end of every year, we sit down and look at the expenditure for last year and the proposed income for the coming year.

"In my mind, it’s all about forward planning and keeping an eye on things. You don’t want to have your head in the sand when it comes to these things.

"Since that period when the club was in trouble, we’ve always lived within our means. We’ve had the opportunity to sign some high-calibre players but not gone down that route because we’re not quite there as a club yet.

"We hope that one day we will be, maybe in more normal times, and that clubhouse renovation will help push us on to that next level.

"But we’re very conscious that we’ve got to live within our means as a club and community because it’s not just a responsibility to the club, it’s to the history of it.

"We’ve got to make sure it’s there for years to come and not just for one or two good seasons, which might happen if we fly too close to the sun.

"I am confident we won’t have the same issues as a few years ago, in spite of the pandemic, because the management and leadership team that are in place now are very different and we keep a tight ship in that regard."

Campion play a level below Thackley, in Division One of the Toolstation Northern Counties East League, and their joint-manager Lee Ashforth reiterated Oliver’s point that spectators are a necessity at their level.

He said: "There’s concern for everyone at grassroots level, because you need spectators in the ground, but that’s why these clubs have got committees and people that can deal with that side of it.

"I’m sure our committee are all over it and we've just got to make sure we do what we can as a management team, making sure the players are covering the Covid rules, travelling in cars themselves, not going to games with each other etc.

"Everything else will be dealt with by the government and the FA in the best way they see fit and we've just got to buy into those guidelines."

Ashforth actually works for the FA as a club coach mentor, so offers plenty of support for the wider grassroots game.

He insists that safety comes first, saying: "As a nation we all want to play football, kids want to play football, but the safety of people has got to be paramount.

"That's from grassroots football right up to Premier League and international football. We've got to do what's right for the country, for the safety of it and the safety of the people who live here.

"Football will always come second to that in my opinion. While we can play football, fantastic, but if the decision is made where we can't we have to deal with that.

"I think as a nation we need to be sensible about keeping everybody safe in difficult times."

Even further down the pyramid, Bradford Sunday Alliance League club West Bowling have had their own challenges to deal with, including having a game called off due to coronavirus.

Their chairman Andrew Corrigan believes finances are not such a big issue at their level, but more players considering whether it's worth carrying on playing.

He said: "We won't be too hurt at our level financially I wouldn't have thought. We obviously just rely on our subs and selling the odd domino card here and there normally.

"We don't really have the finances of the steps further up, like at Brighouse and Guiseley, who have to pay for their grounds and maintain them. If they've not got funds coming in, that's going to be difficult.

"We don't have those kind of overheads, so I don't think it's (coronavirus) that big a danger financially.

"Our main cost is still the ground, but we do have a good sponsor and they help pay for that or if we need a new kit, though we only get one every couple of years, as we can't afford one every season."

Corrigan added: "It's just keeping players interested, that's the hardest part.

"There is that fear of losing players, because people are getting that bit older at the club.

"Last season we could have won four trophies but it all just got called off. Those players won't have that opportunity again, so you will have a few that just say they can't be bothered, especially if it gets called off again this season, which is a possibility."

The Craven League football season had to be suspended temporarily earlier in the month, and West Bowling also missed out on their first game of the campaign due to positive tests at opponents Bradford Moor YSA.

Corrigan explained: "Initially, their secretary rang me and said they'd had two players test positive, but three weeks prior, so I told him they only needed to quarantine for a fortnight.

"But they rang the league and without any guidelines from the FA, the league decided, out of a duty of care to West Bowling and Bradford Moor, that they'd call the game off.

"I'm not sure whether they mentioned to the league about it being three weeks prior, but there you go.

"But rules have been brought in now though, for our league and others, that teams can't call a game off if somebody's got Covid. You just make sure they don't turn up (the individual) and mix with the team."