WEYMOUTH chairman Ian Ridley remains adamant that the club can support Blue Square Premier football following last Sunday’s increased attendance at the Wessex Stadium.

A crowd of 1,264 turned out for the televised league clash against Barrow and although the Terras fell to their ninth successive defeat, Ridley was delighted with the added support and sees it as an encouraging step towards trying to secure the club’s future both on and off the pitch.

It was also an encouraging response to the new regime’s decision to drop admission prices which will now be kept at the same level – £10 for adults and £5 for senior citizens and juniors – for the remainder of the season.

Ridley said: “The Wessex Stadium could have been downbeat, given our losing run and the recent problems at the club but fortunately the fans turned out to back us and I am very grateful.

“We are aware these are hard times for everyone so we are going to retain those prices for our last three home games.

“The way people came back to the club confirms my belief that we can support Blue Square Premier football here, if we can just manage the debt and get through the next few months.

“I thought the club and the town put on a good face for the cameras. I tried to tell them we get about 350 sunny days like that a year but I am not sure they believed me. Setanta Sports told me they did have a great day, though, as did we.

“I am just sorry that we couldn’t have got something out of the game. However, I do believe that now we have a stronger squad, and once manager Alan Lewer gets to work with them over the next week or two, they will gel and we will get the points we need to stay in this league.”

Survival is crucial, according to Ridley, if the club is to maintain income streams for next year, including more televised pay-days.

He added: “This club is still in big trouble and we cannot pretend otherwise. We are £500,000 in debt and have to pay that back gradually.

“We need to cut costs, and I have already said we will probably go part-time next season, and we need to increase revenue as we put in place a more realistic business plan than the club has recently had.

“In the immediate future, we have to get funds in to complete the season. Directors have put in some money but we will need help.

“To that end, we will be re-launching the share sale ready for our next home game against Forest Green Rovers on Easter Monday and we hope fans will be as generous in their support as they were last Sunday.”