Full Time For Part Time

National League side Aldershot are now offering 52 week contracts to players in a bid stop them being poached by other sides. They say the move is a 'calculated risk' in adding a further eight weeks of pay to the existing 44 week schedule that National League sides usually offer.

With the administrative 'season' ending on June 30th, usually National League sides would sign players from July 1st through to the end of the playing season in early May, but the Shots will now go through to June 30th to match deals offered in the Football League.

The move is a further step towards the National League ending being a part time competition. Chester boss Jon McCarthy says that only his side may be part time next season:

“Next season, you could argue that there will only be Chester that are part time. I know you have the likes of a Dover that will stay part time, but in terms of finances and the way that they work things they are very much full time.

“I think it could be that next season is the last ever season where there is a part time element to the National League. It is turning into the old Fourth Division, which I did play in, and this is League Two standard."