Cod Almighty | Diary

Solidarity is a fine word, but ugly when it is abused

17 November 2015

We've news enough to fuel a couple of diaries, though none of it likely to bring Blundell Park crashing beneath the waves, or at least not until such time as North East Lincolnshire Council sees fit. You've had Middle-Aged Diary's take on the stadium often enough. I'll leave that for Wicklow or Devon Diary to consider.

We'll also leave the Telegraph to run the obligatory plug for We are Town. Buy now while stocks last. I sold two of them on the train home on Saturday evening, one to a group of Scunthorpe fans.

Paul Hurst has had a heart-to-heart with Jack Mackreth, and the upshot is he's staying at Blundell Park. After watching Mackreth run down rabbit holes when we were chasing the game at Altrincham I wouldn't have been so sure. After watching him run directly at the Welling defence on Saturday to finally swing the match our way, that's welcome news.

What we really want to talk about today, though, is football finance, isn't it? The Telegraph has gone big on the news that promotion rivals Forest Green posted debts of almost £3million last year, and £2.4million the year before. That is, of course, not an awful lot higher than the £4million total debt Town reported earlier last month. True, Forest Green have run up their debt over a far shorter period, but we still should be careful Blundell Park hasn't been made of glass before we start throwing stones.

Forest Green are one of a few clubs we've encountered with no huge fanbase but an ambitious owner. Since we have been in the Conference, we have seen Fleetwood Town and Crawley promoted. The logic which says Forest Green's example is particularly egregious because their benefactor has made his money from green energy eludes me.

So Town's rivals for a promotion place include clubs who probably have quite a nice ground actually, but no fans. Or rather one very rich fan. If you envy them, I feel sorry for you. One of the pleasures of the weekend was sitting in the Main Stand on a wet, murky afternoon, cosy in the company of 4,000 strangers, sharing a common cause. The Mariners have something that endures, regardless of the league we are playing in. A rich owner undermines that (have a chat to a Hull or Cardiff fan some time) and leaves you vulnerable when he – it usually seems to be a man – loses interest. Remember Rushden & Diamonds?

Our other rivals, next season, will be relegated clubs bolstered by increased parachute payments. This is apparently a tribute to the Football League's restrictive practic... sorry, "solidarity".

At a time when lower-league clubs rarely offer anything more than a one-year contract, the justification is questionable. It is turkeys voting against Christmas, or at least a Christmas in which the only fare on offer is feathers. It is also encouraging clubs to get into debt. The risk of throwing money you haven't got at a relegation fight will be mitigated by the easy terms on offer. Parachute payments are one of those cures for a very real problem – the obscene distribution of wealth in the game – that actually make it worse.