Kidderminster Harriers owner says cup run a boost to everyone

Richard Lane was among those who saw the Harriers come within a minute of beating Premier League West Ham United in the fourth round tie at Aggborough before conceding both a last minute equaliser and then a last minute winner in extra time.

The pain of defeat was obvious for the Kidderminster-born businessman, who has been associated with the club since his father Graham took him as a two-year-old to Aggborough, but he said the cup run had long term financial benefits for the club.

He said: "When I came into the club, I sat down with manager Russ Penn and his assistant Jimmy O'Connor and spoke about where the income would come from and we knew it would be a tight budget.

"You can't budget for the FA Cup, however, and what this will do is help us greatly, not necessarily with just throwing money at the team as I don't think that's the right thing to do and I know Russ and Jimmy are magicians with that.

"What it will do is help us do things like upgrading the floodlights, which cost hundreds of thousands of pounds, as well as upgrading around the ground and we have an exhaustive list of refurbishments we need to do."

Mr Lane said the money from the cup run, which could see as much as £500,000 come into the club, would go towards upgrading the tannoy system, IT, Wi-Fi and a host of other refurbishments in the stadium.

He spoke about the benefits to the town and how the community was closely linked to the club, referencing the carpet industry as part of the heritage of the town.

He said: "This is a carpet town and there is the link to the club as it was sponsoring it heavily and really focussed in the community through the thousands and thousands of workers.

"Since we started here two years ago, we have worked to engage with local businesses and the big employers in the region, who are giving away tickets on league games to their staff to reward them for their loyalty and hard work.

"I think through that, we have created a real community football club at what we class, compared to the Premier League, and it's really begun to shine through as the owners of the businesses are really interested in how the club does."

Mr Lane said he had heard that pubs and clubs around Kidderminster had enjoyed a boost as people came to the town to enjoy the pre-match atmosphere, while hotel rooms for the West Ham game were sold out as far as 15 miles away.

He said the exposure from the cup run for the club and town was something that a price couldn't be put on and praised the people who kept the club going.

He said: "Everyone is buzzing because of this and you can't put a value on that as it's all about memories and a special day that everyone had earned.

"My focus is on the business and ensuring everything is kept financial viable to ensure we survive as a business and a football club, but you can't help but enjoy days like that.

"Our total number of staff here equals 10, including the ground staff, and they do a phenomenal job running this place and are all fantastic individuals.

"It was all worth it and while we are now back to the grind of the league and getting out of the National League North, we are in a great position for everything to come."