Dover Athletic

[22A]

Run out of finance, so all players furloughed. Haven't played a game since 30th January; the thirteen games since all Postponed.

Has anyone heard if their record will be expunged and if so, will they be allowed to remain in the National League, or will they be kicked out?

 

[phantom]

I was puzzled why they still showed on the league table. 

They're never going to finish the season. 

Surely all the results are expunged 

[Jeez]

The owner refuses to borrow money & decided not to put anymore in to keep playing this season.

Crowds down there are small but was just about enough to sustain it.

They’re usually in the league below & coming up into the football league isn’t ever really on the cards so it makes sense to mothball it for the season & take relegation.

[Galway Red]

1 minute ago, Red Alert said:

The owner refuses to borrow money & decided not to put anymore in to keep playing this season.

Crowds down there are small but was just about enough to sustain it.

They’re usually in the league below & coming up into the football league isn’t ever really on the cards so it makes sense to mothball it for the season & take relegation.

There is no relegation this season in the conference 

[Jeez]

2 minutes ago, Galway Red said:

There is no relegation this season in the conference 

Even more reason to furlough the team.

[Portland Bill]

8 hours ago, Galway Red said:

There is no relegation this season in the conference 

There is an FA council meeting today, that decision is on the agenda, it hasn’t been decided yet.

[BanburyRed]

[phantom]

The other odd thing in that league was Kings Lynn announced that they were stopping playing but all of a sudden they came back to life and have caught up with their fixtures

[BTRFTG]

12 hours ago, Red Alert said:

Even more reason to furlough the team.

If the team is non-viable and the owner won't bale it out then the players cannot be furloughed as they've no job to which to return.

[wayne allisons tongues]

Halifax who when they reformed said they would never go into debt, have taken a loan from the FA/DCMS and now are running at a loss to complete the season. 
 

NLN/NLS noted null and void, 18 clubs didn’t like that and wanted to start there own mini league 2 up (1 auto and 1 play off) to get promotion. Clubs who had money wanted to continue and I think that made clubs in national league play on in case there was relegation even though they can’t afford to. It is really a complete mess and clubs next season are going to struggle. Doesn’t help when Stockport pay £250000 for a striker this week whilst other clubs are skint. 
 

The NL board messed up and said grants were available after Xmas but there wasn’t and clubs are left with choice play on and go in debt, don’t play and save the club or play and use non contract players.

 

FA Vase has to finish but behind closed doors so clubs are pulling out for prize money doesn’t cover wages. If your the home team you have to cover oppositions travel costs as well as your own wages and clubs can’t do it. Also before Xmas clubs were forced to play weakened sides due to Covid but some teams just postponed and those who now postponed depending on your county FA have got a chance to okay full strength sides now if they play.

The FA are forcing clubs to play there competition to completion and financially stricken them whilst null and voiding or curtailing leagues from NLN/NLS down. Curtailment is due to FA wanting to restructure steps but can’t if null and void for can’t use results, even though some teams have played only 4 games.

 

[Selred]

11 minutes ago, BTRFTG said:

If the team is non-viable and the owner won't bale it out then the players cannot be furloughed as they've no job to which to return.

If fans are allowed in next season, the club will return. So therefore the players do have a job to return too.

[Loco Rojo]

It's a shame these smaller clubs are the first ones to show their struggles in this way.  It must be horrible for the fans who will be concerned by this. The way football has evolved from a financial point of view is madness and has to change. 

Unfortunately until one of the big clubs is impacted in this way, I can't see things changing soon enough.

[Portland Bill]

14 minutes ago, BTRFTG said:

If the team is non-viable and the owner won't bale it out then the players cannot be furloughed as they've no job to which to return.

The furlough scheme is designed to protect the wages of people who can’t work due to covid restrictions meaning the business can no longer function.

Dover’s main income stream ( paying supporters) has gone, so they are correct in what they are doing.

[BTRFTG]

4 hours ago, Selred said:

If fans are allowed in next season, the club will return. So therefore the players do have a job to return too.

So presumably the owner IS continuing to find his proportion of costs then?

[BTRFTG]

4 hours ago, Portland Bill said:

The furlough scheme is designed to protect the wages of people who can’t work due to covid restrictions meaning the business can no longer function.

Dover’s main income stream ( paying supporters) has gone, so they are correct in what they are doing.

Only if there is a job to which to return. Employers still have to make a contribution to furlough costs and if they don't the Government funding ceases.

[Selred]

24 minutes ago, BTRFTG said:

So presumably the owner IS continuing to find his proportion of costs then?

Currently companies haven't got to pay any % towards Furlough. This, I believe, changes in July and August where it's 10% and 20% towards. 

[BTRFTG]

48 minutes ago, Selred said:

Currently companies haven't got to pay any % towards Furlough. This, I believe, changes in July and August where it's 10% and 20% towards. 

Under the original terms the grant covered 80% up to £2.5 k per month, therefore Dover would have picked up 20% of any employee contract (unless the employee voluntarily accepted reduced contract terms else if they didn't under FA regulation their contracts are void - many clubs to maintain contracts and maximize the grant have agreed with players to defer the 20%.) Ditto sums in excess of the threshold for which clubs are 100% liable. Dover would also have paid employer NICs and any guaranteed pension contributions on grant payments made. To recieve the grant employers had to continue to pay, hence my original point that if the owner isn't meeting those liabilities then there may be no furlough.

[Selred]

25 minutes ago, BTRFTG said:

Under the original terms the grant covered 80% up to £2.5 k per month, therefore Dover would have picked up 20% of any employee contract (unless the employee voluntarily accepted reduced contract terms else if they didn't under FA regulation their contracts are void - many clubs to maintain contracts and maximize the grant have agreed with players to defer the 20%.) Ditto sums in excess of the threshold for which clubs are 100% liable. Dover would also have paid employer NICs and any guaranteed pension contributions on grant payments made. To recieve the grant employers had to continue to pay, hence my original point that if the owner isn't meeting those liabilities then there may be no furlough.

The owner is funding the bare minimum, so yes NIC and pension. 

[redpole]

So could the league become a mockery if there is no relegation?? Technically teams at the bottom who can’t go up or in the playoffs could technically furlough their players to save money??? 

[Jeez]

5 hours ago, BTRFTG said:

Under the original terms the grant covered 80% up to £2.5 k per month, therefore Dover would have picked up 20% of any employee contract (unless the employee voluntarily accepted reduced contract terms else if they didn't under FA regulation their contracts are void - many clubs to maintain contracts and maximize the grant have agreed with players to defer the 20%.) Ditto sums in excess of the threshold for which clubs are 100% liable. Dover would also have paid employer NICs and any guaranteed pension contributions on grant payments made. To recieve the grant employers had to continue to pay, hence my original point that if the owner isn't meeting those liabilities then there may be no furlough.

The owner is independently wealthy, money comes from packaging fresh produce into supermarkets, but the while the club is reasonably well funded / debt free it and the local fan base is so small, it’s more of community club & not one that necessarily has aspirations of troubling the leagues.

Yes it’s disappointing for the fans but it’s actually pretty sensible decision if there’s no income in the horizon.

[phantom]

Dover Athletic to appeal after National League expunges their season for failing to fulfil fixtures during pandemicDover say they have been "hung out to dry" by the National League after they were one of 16 teams across three divisions punished for failing to fulfil fixtures this season due to the financial impact of coronavirus

The division's bottom side, who have only played 15 times this season compared to at least 25 by the rest, will play no further part in the current campaign and have seen their results wiped out.

They have also been handed a 12-point deduction to start with next season and a £40,000 fine for being in breach of league rules.

These are the findings of an independent panel commissioned by the League, who have also handed suspended points penalties to 16 clubs in tier two for not fulfilling fixtures, as well as punishing Kings Lynn and Southport for breaching coronavirus protocols.

Dover and the others were deemed to have not had "just cause" to miss fixtures since the turn of the year, after the cessation of grants led to a financial crisis at numerous clubs.

The Kent club have told Sky Sports News they will appeal to the Football Association, and have also confirmed they are seeking legal advice.

Dover's owner and chairman Jim Parmenter told SSN: "We believe we demonstrated just cause, backed up by lawyers and insolvency practitioners, but I don't think the league has taken that into account and they haven't explained why they have deemed us not to have just cause.

"We have been hung out to dry and made an example of to the rest of the league with this draconian punishment. They are trying to implement a rule book that is not designed to deal with issues like a pandemic.

"We've stuck our necks out while there are seven or eight other clubs in a similar situation scared stiff of the type of action the league has taken against us.

"We have demonstrated we cannot afford to continue, nor finance a loan, so how does issuing us with a £40,000 fine help football?"

The National League's statement said: "The panel had regard to financial information provided by Dover Athletic and fully respected the responsibility of the club's directors under company law. However, the panel also had to consider the integrity of the competition and the actions of Dover in relation to the other 22 Clubs that continue to incur much costs as they fulfill their fixtures.

"In view of the current financial situation and in order to reflect the approach taken in other cases of breaches of rule 8.39, the independent panel reduced the initial fine by 20 per cent to £40,000."