Leon Sewell expects Hall Road Rangers to be in a sound financial position if the season starts and there is another period of uncertainty, whilst praising his club’s management of the books.
The Hull-based Toolstation NCEL Division One outfit have made several long-term investments since March, which they believe will increase the prospects of the club thriving on-and-off-the-field for many years to come.
Sewell, speaking before the club were told of their FA Cup places for the planned 2020/21 campaign, believes when football does return the priority has to be getting ducks in a row by building up cash reserves incase the season is halted prematurely.
“Naturally Hall Road Rangers are a club which lives within its means,” Sewell told Non League Yorkshire.
“We’re sensible with the money what comes into the club and I believe if we were to go into lockdown again we would be in a secure (financial) position) to continue.
“We don’t break the bank on budgets and things like that. What we have to be concerned about is our sponsors and is their day-to-day going to be affected because we envisage a downturn in our revenue through sponsorship. A lot of teams will do so.
“Hall Road maybe fall into the category of living hand to mouth and we don’t necessarily have a big following like North Ferriby’s, Hallam’s, Selby’s and teams in the higher leagues. That’s why we have had to approach the cash situation in a different perspective by giving the (clubhouse) venue more than a lick of paint to make it more attractive.
“It is something our friends at Selby are doing. They have saved up and with a bit of help from here and there they’ve done their bar out. From what I’ve seen it looks good and as does our facility.
“Like anyone you have to live within your means and what may happen is the two (NCEL) leagues are more competitive this season with a level playing field because some clubs won’t want to break the bank incase it (lockdown) happens again.
“I know some clubs have players on contract and how do you manage that situation if we go into lockdown again or the season falls short? How are clubs going to afford to keep paying those players until in theory the end of their contract. That is a massive risk factor. I know it is a small percentage of clubs in the NCEL who have players on contract, but it is still something to think about.
“Each to their own and if that’s how they (clubs) want to manage their budget and players then fair play to them. I wouldn’t like to envisage what potentially could happen if we get cut short because that money could be put in a savings pot for when everything does calm down and we get more normality in our day-to-day lives and not just football.”
Making the clubhouse more attractive is just one part of Hall Road’s lockdown masterplan.
Hall Road are a leading community club in the East Riding with many junior teams and the many pitches at Haworth Park are major community assets.
So with one eye on the long-term future finances, Rangers have invested heavily in pitch maintenance equipment for their pitches which they believe will help save money in the long run.
“We are realistic about what we can spend, whether it is in what we can give to players in expenses or stocking the bar,” Sewell said.
“We have to be cautious and at times we have to count the pennies and personally I don’t see anything wrong with that, I think you have to live within your means and be realistic what you can pay out over the course of the season on-and-off-the-pitch.
“On the pitch we have put 50kg of seed on it. Some people will say ‘bloody hell that’s a lot’, others will say ‘that’s not enough’. But that’s what we could afford to do so we’ve done it.
“It was never the most attractive ground when you drove up the lane, but we’ve had it all cut down and that will be now extra parking.
“We have invested in a couple of new mowers. To have the full facility cut we have had to (previously) use a contractor and we worked out the money we will save over six or seven months by cutting it ourselves. We see it (the mowers) as a long-term investment.
“Provided we look after the mowers and they are maintained, there is no reason why not.
“We’ve bought a roller, a spiker and a machine that collects the grass clippings. These investments are to look after all the pitches, not just the first team pitch, because we have the two full-size pitches, one five-a-side pitch, one seven-a-side pitches, two nine-a-side pitches and a three-quarter pitch.
“We have a lot of grass to maintain. Going back to local community connections, I had to go to the club a few weeks ago to meet the head groundsman from (Rugby League side) Hull Kingston Rovers.
“Naturally you’d think ‘why are you meeting with a Rugby League groundsman’, but this particular groundsman was the head groundsman at the KC Stadium and Lincoln City so he knows his grass and he’s been advising us about the pitches.”
As well as the maintenance equipment shed, Rangers have shaken up their youth teams by introducing a new development team for impending new season.
Sewell appears excited about the changes and clearly expects it to be beneficial to the first team in the long run.
“We’ve brought in a new development team which is an established development team so that will give me more scope to work with more players,” he said.
“We have security and stability and in terms of a production line last year we had a first team, reserve team which unfortunately fell by the wayside and an under 19s team. We’ve brought in a new development team and parted ways with the under 19s, but we have a strong Sunday morning under 17s team coming through.
“That under 17s team is in effect our under 18s and those players will be given the opportunity when we know what’s what a run-out with the development team.
“There might be a player or two from the development team who may want to make the step up to the first team. Then we’re working on the basis that all our players are from Hull and the East Riding which is great and that means we don’t have to break the bank giving a couple of players £100s and £200s a week.
“For me, at the level we’re at, I don’t agree with that. I get that some people want to play for their local club, but if you’re worthy of playing in the league higher or two leagues higher, go play for your next local club who are one or two leagues higher.”
Sewell himself has thrown himself into work at the club in recent months not just on the management front. The former Selby Town manager lost his full-time job early on in the lockdown and he admits going up to Haworth Park to mow the pitches has been good mentally.
Alongside grass cutting, Sewell channelled his inner Laurence Llewelyn-Bowles with a bit of interior design by painting the away changing room – although he resisted the chance to paint a mural of himself in it.
“It has been good (for my mental health), but yes I am first team manager, but I’m also a volunteer as well,” he said.
“At the beginning of lockdown I was working three days a week on reduced pay so I had a day or two when I could go down myself or with the vice-chairman (Dave Reader).
“All the changing rooms have been painted out and we have done a bit of work inside and out. It is not just about making the ground an attraction for our club members and players, but also visitors.
“I’ve had a paint brush in my hand. The vice-chairman repainted all the flooring. I actually painted the away dressing room. Its black! I’m joking, it is blue and white.”