Bromley F.C. have increased the scrutiny facing fellow National League side Boreham Wood F.C as they continue to charge visiting teams who wish to provide their own commentary.
Whilst 23 of the 24 National League clubs allow their visiting teams free access to media coverage, The Wood charge their visitors £50+VAT for commentary.
Bromley travelled to Boreham Wood on Tuesday night and brought just over 100 away fans to Meadow Park. Fans who were unable to make the journey to the other side of Greater London had to keep updated with the game via Twitter, instead of the usual commentary service that Bromley provide through Mixlr, which is free of charge to supporters.
Social Media Storm
Ahead of the fixture Bromley sent out a tweet, writing:
“Unfortunately, there will be no commentary this evening due to rules set by the home side whereby we’d have to pay. “Apologies for the inconvenience, but if you’re not making the trip, we’ll have updates on here as normal”.
The tweet caught the eye of ex-footballer and current pundit Gary Neville, who replied calling for the National League to step in:
“Hate stuff like this from opposing clubs! The League should step in”.
Neville’s tweet quickly attracted the attention of many fellow football fans, with most agreeing with the Salford City co-owner. This included a Boreham Wood fan who echoed the view that the National League should do something about it.
“Surely it would work better if the league sorted things out rather than individual clubs?”.
Disappointing Lack Of Cooperation
After the match, which ended in a 2-0 away win for Bromley, the club’s media manager Josh Tindall expressed how the club are disappointed they do not receive the same treatment that they extend to visiting sides:
“We pride ourselves at Bromley for being very accommodating to visiting staff, including media when they come to Hayes Lane, so it’s disappointing when other clubs don’t return the favour. I could completely understand if we were making money from using Boreham Wood’s facilities, but to listen is free of charge. It’s unique as 99% of clubs have welcomed us doing it, just like we do for them”.
No Change Despite Criticism
Boreham Wood have stood by their controversial decision in the past, with Bromley not the first side to publicly voice their disdain at the charge. Former National League side Chester showed their anger following their match against The Wood back in 2016, a move which received a stern response from Boreham Wood, who were subsequently backed by the League who said they were well within their rights to charge.
With no signal that Boreham Wood are willing to scrap the commentary fee that has been in place for several years, clubs will continue to refuse to pay in a unified show of resolve.
Edited by Gregg Baxter
