Yes, it would be a good gesture, but its not Liverpool's place to help Luton Town, plus they never helped Liverpool in 1987 when they never turned up for a 3rd round replay at Anfield saying they were snowed in, all lies, they were down to there bare bones and would have been knocked out. By the time the replay went ahead all the top players were back, cheats . Cant see the FA giving their share of the gate, can you ?
Anyway, looks like we're being painted the baddies again - what's new ?
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/sport/football/article3134370.eceJanuary 5, 2008
Lutonâs plea for financial help from Liverpool is turned down
Tom DartLiverpool have refused a request from Luton Town to donate their share of the gate money from tomorrowâs FA Cup third-round tie to their opponents, despite the Coca-Cola League One club being in such dire financial straits that they are in danger of folding and cannot afford to pay their players.
Luton are losing about ÂŁ400,000 a month and went into administration in November. Their players have been paid only 2½ weeksâ wages in the past nine weeks. The clubâs joint-administrator, Brendan Guilfoyle, asked the Barclays Premier League club if they were willing to forgo a share of the revenue from the tie, but was rebuffed.
âThey probably said, âWe have to pay players ÂŁ100,000 a week. You must be joking, otherwise we will be like you,â â Kevin Blackwell, the Luton manager, said. âYou just have to accept it. There are people in life who have got a Rolls-Royce while some people have a Mini. We are Mini drivers.â
The match will be televised live, earning each club ÂŁ150,000, and Kenilworth Road will be full to its 10,000 capacity. Of the gate money, 45 per cent goes to each club and 10 per cent to a Football Association pool, so Luton and Liverpool stand to receive about ÂŁ100,000 each from ticket sales. The winning club earns ÂŁ40,000 in prize-money.
Blackwell is donating his wages to Lutonâs trainees, who are paid ÂŁ70 a week. âIâve got players here on ÂŁ175 a week, some on ÂŁ400, so there are lads here who canât even handle being in the situation because it came out of the blue,â he said. âWe went into administration three days before pay-day in November. It wasnât as if anyone was given any warning.â
While Lutonâs mess - they also face a series of charges relating to alleged irregular payments to players - is hardly Liverpoolâs problem, their decision not to make a gesture of support will reopen the debate about whether the nationâs leading clubs should do more to help their smaller cousins, given the vast amount of money flowing into top-flight football.
League One clubs receive about ÂŁ375,000 a year from the Football Leagueâs television deal. The Premier Leagueâs various television contracts bring in about ÂŁ900 million a year, of which they donate roughly 1.2 per cent to the Football League to be shared among its clubs. But even the club that finishes bottom of the Premier League this season can expect to be handed more than ÂŁ30 million in TV revenue alone.
Going into administration provoked a ten-point deduction that leaves Luton in the relegation zone. With other clubs circling, they face a player exodus during the transfer window. The administrators have set a deadline of 5pm Monday for offers from prospective buyers and two parties are thought to be seriously interested.
An FA spokesman confirmed that there is no rule to prevent a club donating their share of the gate money to an opponent. Chelsea gave ÂŁ25,000 to Scarborough for youth development when the clubs met in the FA Cup in 2004, though Roman Abramovich, the owner, can easily afford such largesse.
Liverpoolâs American owners, Tom Hicks and George Gillett Jr, are not in Abramovichâs financial league. Their takeover of the club last year and plans to build a new stadium rely heavily on bank loans. Liverpool refused to comment on Lutonâs request.
