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| Josh Gowling |
In his latest column for the Guardian Hereford manager Josh Gowling has been contrasting the budgets in the National North League.
'At Hereford we fell short of the playoffs, despite giving it a good go in the second half of the season, but teams such as York have got there and it is easy to imagine them getting the momentum to progress through the divisions.
'The National League is so competitive now but, at the same time, it has
the hierarchies you see everywhere above it in the pyramid. It is
getting more financially stratified: there are clubs operating with huge
budgets and I know of sides in our division who, although they finished
below us, have three times my budget. There are some who have at least
£1m to spend on paying players and I would bite your hand off for even
half of that.
We are seeing businessmen take over clubs with the understanding that, if they put wealth in and run them well, they can quickly take them several levels higher and make a healthy return. Some are able offer two- or three-year deals and, again, that is unfathomable at Hereford currently. The disparities are growing but it just adds to the challenge: we have always known we need to work smarter and faster than others, and we hope the data analysis model we installed last year will continue to bear fruit.'
Gowling feels that clubs like Hereford don't get rewarded for the work they put in to improve players. He mentions Maziar Kouhyar who moved to York for nothing because he wasn't under contract.
'We know the rules. But it is striking that clubs can derail one another’s seasons by signing their key players so easily, and it becomes more pronounced when the gap between rich and poor widens. It makes you feel a bit insecure as a manager, at times: if a player starts performing, the vultures begin to hover. Non-league clubs are now more productive than ever and should be rewarded appropriately.
'This pre-season I will be casting my eye around for the players who can take Hereford to the next level, even if again we will have to defy the odds. While we have lost key individuals – including our entire front three – during the season, the upside is that we have a reputation for helping players to get better and kick on.'
Read more at: https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/2022/may/14/football-best-academy-players-can-be-poached-for-nothing-non-league