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Cornish club speaks on cost of living crisis and catching attention with stunning FA Cup run

Cornish football club Helston Athletic speaks on battling the cost of living crisis and catching attention with their stunning FA Cup run.

An away game means much of the day travelling for the part-time club who are around two hours south west of Plymouth.

“Our hearts sink each time we hear the FA Cup draw,” says Helston’s chairman Paul Hendy as they get set to play at Weston-super-Mare.

On Saturday, Helston’s team coach departed at 8:30am for a third qualifying round tie, which will be a 340-mile round trip involving five stops along the way to pick up players and staff in such places as Truro, Bodmin, Saltash, Plymouth and Tiverton.

In the second qualifying round they set off at 7:00am with breakfast granola pots for a 450-mile day out to Bishop’s Cleeve in Gloucestershire.

Having started out in the extra preliminary round on the 6th August, this is Helston’s fourth away tie in eight weeks, seeing them clocked up 1,250 miles in the FA Cup this season alone.

With winter approaching and the cost of living crisis starting to hit the nation, hundreds of football clubs are worried about heating costs, energy bills for floodlights and fuel prices. Concerned they might be forced to fold.

“We’ve already been approached by a club in our league asking whether we would agree to change the kick-off time so that they can save on floodlight costs,” adds Hendy.

“Our clubhouse used to open every night. Not now. We can’t afford it when only one person comes in for a bottle of Coke.”

Helston, who have 25 teams operating, reckon they can just about ride out the financial storm and provide the town with a community facility for many years to come, with thanks to their run in the cup but also to the staff and volunteers who do their bit.

Helston Athletic chairman Paul Hendy (left) and treasurer Sandra Egan
Paul Hendy, Helston’s chairman, with groundsman club treasurer Sandra Egan, a former bank manager who washes the kit

As reported by BBC Sport, Helston is two and a half miles from the fishing port of Porthleven, which is visited by tens of thousands of tourists each year.

Most of the squad members are based in two hour away Plymouth, and just one of the players – Josh Storey – is on a contract. The rest receive expenses but no wages.

“In terms of geography, Helston is quite far down,” says manager Matt Cusack.

“When we are trying to recruit players from further afield, they might be reluctant to join because fuel costs more than it did.

“I hear murmurs from players about the cost of petrol and that’s where things potentially get a little bit difficult for us.”

Defender Tom Hands doesn’t let the cost of living and distance put him off from playing for the team even though he is 200 miles away studying at Bath University.

“He travels down every game,” adds Hendy, who also acts as Helston’s groundsman to cut costs.

“They are all young players. They have got mortgages and are impacted by rising costs like we all are.

“I’ve just filled my car up and it cost me £102. Not long ago it was £75 maximum.”

Players Josh Storey (right) and Tyler Elliott (centre) help Paul Osborne, who runs the Blues Kitchen which serves food to fans on matchdays, with the washing up
Players Josh Storey (right) and Tyler Elliott (centre) help Paul Osborne, who runs the Blues Kitchen which serves food to fans on matchdays, with the washing up

Acting as chairman and groundsman, Hendy, 57, also is seen running the bar on matchdays. He once played for the club and used to edit the programme.

Helston have won three promotions in his nine years as chairman, while Kellaway Park has seen more than £100,000 worth of improvements, including the installation of floodlights in 2015 and also jazzed up their changing rooms.

They have also appointed a director of football in Steve Massey, who once scored for Wrexham against Spanish side Real Zaragoza in the European Cup Winners Cup in 1986.

A retired BT operations manager, Hendy spends around 50 hours a week at the club along with his partner, Sandra, a former bank manager who uses her experience to keep the club’s finances updated.

She also washes the kit, one of the numbers of volunteer committee members who help keep Helston going.

“I know there are teams at our level struggling,” says Hendy. “Sandra and I have come from an environment where we were driven to reduce costs and get rid of waste. We want the club to survive for the community.

“To cut costs we’ve changed energy supplier and the brewery who provide drinks for the bar.

“We had a company that pulled out of a sponsorship deal but times are hard and we move on. I’m always grateful to the businesses that support us because they don’t have to. It’s not like we are getting exposure on national television.

“We’re fortunate in that we are next to a busy road that has about 12,000 vehicles go past every day. It’s prime advertising space and we take full advantage of our location.”

Helston see an average attendance of around 150, adults paying £5, over 65s can get in for £3 (over 65s) and it’s just £1 for under 18s.

“We had 351 in the ground for the FA Cup replay with Bishop’s Cleeve,” adds Hendy. “I think we even had a few who climbed over the fence as well.

“We’ve discussed putting the prices up. It’s not what we’re about. We’re about offering people the opportunity to come and enjoy the football.”

To help their supporters with the cost of living crisis, Helston have put on free coach travel to Weston-super-Mare, who play two levels higher.

“We have already exceeded our expectations in the FA Cup this season so there is no pressure,” adds boss Cusack.

This is the club’s best FA Cup run in their 126-year history and Hendy was as many supporters as possible get the chance to experience Saturday’s game.

Helston will use some of the £10,000 earned from the 2022/23 run to fund the travel, while Helston’s women’s team bagged an additional £1,800 last month after winning their FA Cup first qualifying round tie against Crediton United.

“Although there’s a lot of stuff going on with the cost of living, we’re in a much stronger position than we were,” says Hendy.

“The money we have earned from the FA Cup is not going on things like electric and gas because we will cut our costs accordingly for that.

“It will be used to improve facilities and will serve as a permanent reminder of the year we made it through to the third qualifying round of the FA Cup for the first time.”

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