Red Lines!

I read in the national papers yesterday that E.U.F.A. are threatening to insist on participants in the Champions league, making a conscious attempt to reduce their 'excessive debt'. I then thought what would happen if this was to become law for all European clubs, where would the current Irish league clubs be (up the proverbial creek without a paddle I'd warrant)? Of course knowing E.U.F.A. they wouldn't stop there, they wouldn't only want to know the extent of each clubs debt, they'd also want to know where their money comes from. On the one hand clubs like Glentoran (at least £1 million in debt), Coleraine, probably if they had to pay back what they owe the taxman and creditors, they'd be close to the magic Million too and Cliftonville, would be hard pressed to justify their continued existence, as Cliftonville exist on a shoestring budget, I assume they've exhausted their credit limits also. While some other teams, like ourselves, Newry City (or is it Town) and the mighty Linfield wouldn't want someone prying into where their finances came from. Linfield freely admit to being subsidised by their supporters clubs, but where do they (the supporters clubs) get the money from I wonder, one can only make so much money from members subs I think. We at Ballymena are backed by some astute businessmen (no sorry rich businessmen), if they were astute they'd put their money somewhere else, instead of throwing it into the black hole that is our finances. Then there's Newry (or as Roy McCreadie called them, Neu-ray), just where their money comes from is anybody's guess. The biggest home gate I've seen in my trips there is about 80 and I'm sure when the likes of Institute, Dungannon Swifts and Distillery breeze into Town (sorry City), they'll struggle to double their gate, in fact let's face it if they broke the ton (100 to any morons accidentally on the site),it'd be a bloody miracle. Newcomers Bangor (who I must say are doing very nicely), are another whose finances might not bear close scrutiny, in fact is their any club, in the black, who can say with their 'hand on their heart', there's nothing underhand going on here? Maybe in fact as the old saying goes, 'there are some stones, that are best left, unturned'!