Football club fearful over rising fees, but have hopefully found a way to cut costs

Llanbradach AFC are one of the many clubs in Caerphilly County Borough facing rising costs, however their chairman believes there is one thing more sides should be looking into in order to lower expenses.

As the council proposes a 20% hike in pitch fees, many clubs are concerned over what that could mean for their future. Llanbradach are no different.

However, long-time chairman Kenny Ball hopes the club’s recent installation of solar panels, thanks to a council grant, will mitigate the costs of rising fees elsewhere.

Speaking to Caerphilly Observer, Mr Ball said: “If this increase is approved then it’s going to hit a lot of clubs around here hard.

“We have 12 teams from juniors up to seniors, and we play on three separate pitches, so it really does add up.”

Like other clubs, costs have been rising in other areas for Llanbradach. Mr Ball continued: “Kit costs and referee costs have also been going up. Our electric bill was up £300 last year and insurance up £200.

“If costs rise, we have to consider raising subs, but that’s the last resort. We want to see kids out there playing football. We’re one of the cheapest clubs around and we’d like to keep it that way.”

Llanbradach claim they are the only club in Caerphilly County Borough to offer a unique deal, where if one child plays for them, their sibling plays for half price.

“People just can’t afford it these days”, Mr Ball said. “It’s difficult not to pass it down but times are tough on everyone”, he added.

One way in which Mr Ball hopes to reduce costs, specifically energy costs, in the future, is through their newly fitted solar panels. He said: “We’re hopeful this will save us a tremendous amount of money over the coming years, and allow us to put-off increasing subs.

“We couldn’t do this without grant funding, so we’d like to thank Cllr Colin Mann and Sports Wales, who helped us out a lot.”

More details on the Community Empowerment Fund can be found on the council’s website.