It has come to the attention of the club that there is some disappointment regarding the starting prize pot of £500 in the club lottery, due to be drawn this Saturday.

The starting point for the lottery has always been £500 and the £1,000 starting point was done only when the draw pot climbed into the thousands as a good gesture by the club – a thank you to the all the players, whether or not they contribute each and every week, and an opportunity for those players to potentially win a bigger prize straight off the bat.

As with any organisation, we need to follow a sustainable model financially and to run constantly at £1,000 starting point would result in us running at a loss and would prove difficult to maintain. Ultimately this would only serve to undo and destabilise the hard work, effort and commitment of those involved with the week-to-week running of the lottery.

We would also like to make those concerned aware that this is a standard model that we follow and that other football clubs are in much the same situation, so this is by no means a show of ‘greed’ by the club. We want to allay any fears and hopefully put those who are disgruntled at ease.

However, we do listen to our fans, customers and those associated with the club and by unanimous decision this evening have decided to reinstate the prize pot of £1,000 this weekend in light of the complaints that surround reverting to the original starting point.

It is important that we are completely transparent in matters such as this and we take any allegation of greed very seriously.

We are a progressive club that only aims to excel to the highest possible levels and are appreciative of the support we have had and continue to have from the local community. The club’s portion of the lottery money is reinvested back into supporting all of our football teams and making football available and affordable for all in the community, something recognised in our recent win at the Anuerin Leisure Trust Awards, where we picked up Sports Club of the Year, with other winners also attributing their time at the club as a platform to help them develop in the sports and community world.

We would once again like to thank the players who contribute every week and try their luck for those all-important four numbers and remind you that this is an open draw for any and all players, connected with the club or not.

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