New Year, New Rules

The New Year has brought some new ambition from a couple of non-league clubs.

Both National League side Southport and National North Harrogate Town have declared their intention to go full time next season.

For Southport, a Football League club some 40 years ago, it is their second attempt to go full time in recent memory. They tried the same in 2006 that saw them lose then manager Liam Watson and most of their part-time side and, by the end of the season, their place in the Conference as the newly assembled squad failed to gel quickly enough under replacement boss Paul Cook. Cook also failed to last the season, being replaced in January by Peter Davenport who failed to halt the slide.

Davenport retained his job for the full-time squad to take a tilt at the Conference North title. They failed again, with Davenport axed in April prior to a play-off defeat to Stalybridge. Watson returned to the club in the summer, having previously refusing to give up his day job, and the full time project was quietly dropped.

This time around Watson is Operations Director at the club he served twice as manager, winning the National North title on each occasion. Chairman Charlie Clapham remains in charge of the boardroom, and with an average gate over 1,000 only by virtue of near neighbours Tranmere bringing 2,000 supporters for their August Bank Holiday weekend match.

The other club, Harrogate, have attracted gates as low as 400 this season and have an average of 1,000 boosted by huge travelling numbers from Halifax and Darlington. The decision to go full time has already cost them the services of Assistant Manager John McDermott, with the Grimsby Town legend opting - like Watson - to concentrate on his day job following the announcement.

Other clubs with similarly small attendances and income have tried full time status in the past, usually relying on a sugar daddy or a squad made of up players that prefer the lifestyle of a full time football to a wage they can realistically live on.

Some players have played full time for little more than pocket money and a roof over their head. Blackpool once employed an ex-Man Utd player, Bojan Djordjic on £90 a week as the player sought to follow the dream.

That was the minimum wage figure the FA accept for a full time footballer, given the hours they are expected to attend work. And there is always someone that is prepared to exploit that to call their club "full time" despite an obvious lack of resources.