What it’ll take to save this 113-year-old footy club: Auditors hand down report, suggest changes
A PROUD suburban footy club established more than a century ago has been told in no uncertain terms it needs to make some drastic changes – and quickly – to survive. Can it do it?
A LONG-standing northeastern football club must cut player payments, increase membership costs and close its bistro or risk folding, a new report has found.
Campbelltown Council last week agreed to agreed to temporarily suspend payments the 113-year old Athelstone Football Club was making to service a more than $200,000 debt – but only if it agreed to address its ailing finances.
A report to the council by auditors BRM Holdich said the Raggies had incurred significant losses – $420,000 in the past three years – raising fears for the club’s long-term future.
In a letter attached to the report, BRM Holdich director Mark Booth said the club was “under significant financial stress” and would be “unable to sustain itself without a significant change in operations during 2017”.
“The club also has solvency issues which must be addressed in the near future,” Mr Booth wrote.
“Urgent change is required in the services being provided by the AFC and in the governance structures in place to manage the club’s affairs.”
The club had been paying Campbelltown Council $880 a week to lease its clubrooms at George St, Paradise, as well as for oval hire, building insurance, rates and upgrade work.
The BRM Holdich audit found the club’s Raggies Bistro had lost $278,000 since 2014, accounting for more than two thirds of the total losses.
The audit recommended the club:
CLOSE the bistro and lay off staff;
REDUCE payments to players and coaches;
INVESTIGATE ways to generate short-term cashflow, such as increasing membership costs; and
REPORT back to Campbelltown Council at least fortnightly on its financial position.
Campbelltown chief executive Paul Di Iulio said the club was “comfortable” with the recommendations.
“From my reading of it, and without mentioning any names specifically, I think the three gentlemen that have been directors … do get the gravity of the situation,” Mr Di Iulio told last week’s meeting.
Mr Di Iulio earlier told the meeting he had met with Athelstone president and treasurer Stephen Young, secretary Graham Rosewarne and football director Stephen Brown.
He said if the club folded the council would not be able to recover the $200,000 it was owed.
Amateur league chief executive John Kernahan said he was aware Athelstone Football Club was in consultation with Campbelltown, but it had met its financial requirements to the league and he envisaged it being “a member of this league for a long time to come”.
In a written statement, Mr Young said “escalating wage, food and energy costs” were “contributing factors” in the bistro losses.
He also said the council-owned building was “outdated, which had “made attracting functions and the like extremely difficult”.
“We will survive,” Mr Young said.