Keyte: I'm committed, but I won't foot the bill. (From Hereford Times)

Keyte: I'm committed, but I won't foot the bill.

9:49am Thursday 11th October 2012 in Sport By Richard Prime

HEREFORD United chairman David Keyte has reaffirmed his commitment to the club he has supported
since his childhood.
But the Bulls chief who is believed to have pumped
around £350,000 of his own money into the club, has
admitted he is reconsidering the depth of his financial involvement.
“I am totally committed but I am now revisiting the
financial commitment,” he said.
“Up until now, we have had a board of directors
who have taken it upon themselves to cover the
financial ups and downs of running a football club.
“My recent letter to shareholders was to suggest
that, based on the very low crowds, it was pushing it
beyond what we should expect of any group of
three or four to do.
“The football club is for the people of the city and the people of Herefordshire so there is a reality check there. If people are not willing to support the
club in sufficient numbers, then why should three or
four people carry the burden and I am thinking about myself particularly in that.
“I, as have my colleagues, have put a lot of money in
and you have to step back and say that enough is
enough.”
The Bulls chairman admitted that he had held discussions with director of football Gary Peters whose
position has been questioned by fans.
“Gary Peters is still here doing bits and pieces for
Martin Foyle,” said Keyte. “I spoke to him at length
on Tuesday and all I can really say is that we are
exploring all avenues.”
He also acknowleged that the success of the Starlite
Rooms has been a key factor in keeping the club afloat.
“Taking the fixtures on a monthby-month basis, usually you have two home matches where we are budgeting to get £15,000 per match after the VAT man and we
have been banking £8,000,” he said.
“Without the extra income from the Starlite Rooms, it would be very stark at the moment.”
But he confirmed that any prospect of the club reverting to part-time status were premature. “I was quoted as talking about going part-time and I think it was taken out of context a little,” he said.
“I was discussing lowerleague football and at what
time in the future it would need to be radically changed with regionalised and part-time football.
“As with all lower-league clubs, we have to look at every possibility but it’s certainly not something we
are looking at in the immediate future.” He retains
the hope that the FA Cup can give the coffers a boost
and lift morale around the club.
“The FA Cup gives you hope in many ways and not just financially,” he said. “And at Hereford United there is the very strong cup tradition. “You look at the prizes
per round and it is £12,500 if you get through to the
first round but now we have the draw and we know there are no guarantees.
“We all fancied Manchester United in the third
round away and this is the cut-down version.”
But now he is keen to see what backing the  shareholders will give at a meeting at the Starlite Rooms next Tuesday.
“My letter included an invite to come to a fairly open discussion next Tuesday,” he said.
“While I have not yet had any direct response, the
important thing was to get it our there and set people thinking.”