City’s problem not unique - Cork Independent News

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City’s problem not unique

Written by Michael Carr

Thursday, 21 August 2008

The eircom Premier League’s top scorer packs his bags this week and follows in the footsteps of former Cork City players Kevin Doyle, Shane Long and Alan Bennet to Reading FC.

Dave Mooney’s goals have kept the Leesiders afloat in three cup competitions this season to offset a stuttering league campaign, but the young striker has probably already played his last game with the business end of the season still to come.

City’s debts were revealed this week to be €1.3 million - the quarter or so million recouped on Mooney will at least give the club a little breathing space while an interim examiner appraises its financial situation - and face a rocky road over the next few months unless some serious investment can be found.

City join a growing list of Irish clubs that have found themselves in financial strife over the last few seasons, despite the increased profile of the league and the general improvement at the turnstiles. Indeed, City can boast one of the country’s largest home supports, yet still find themselves staring into the financial abyss.

FAI officials have recently stated that the eircom League is still in the first phase of a five-year plan and in three or four more years we should see a greater stability that will ensure the commercial positions of its clubs. This is not a whole lot of use to Cork City right now, however.

As Irish clubs have embarked on the metamorphosis into professionalism over the last number of years, the impression is that the business practices and commercial management of some of the clubs have not caught up with modern professional football and projected revenues have been badly mis-calculated when held up against the spiralling costs of running a top flight Irish club.

The FAI might be well-advised to concentrate more on assisting clubs with their business plans and sitting down for regular meetings with its top tier clubs where they can offer sound financial advice and pre-empt problems that might arise off the football pitch. Then again, the FAI has never exactly been renowned for its financial acumen and perhaps the clubs would baulk at receiving advice from an organisation who were happy to let our national side run about on a lumpy rugby pitch until they could put off the re-development of Lansdowne Road no longer.

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