THE Terras are contemplating going full-time in a bid to improve their fortunes in the Evo-Stik Southern Premier Division.

The admission was made at a fans’ forum following Saturday’s draw with Hungerford Town where George Rolls, vice-chairman Mark Coleman, club secretary Nigel Biddlecombe, commercial manager Jamie Austin and first-team boss Brendon King were all on hand to answer questions.

Unfortunately, only around 50 fans took the opportunity but it still made for an interesting debate with the board once again reiterating its full backing for King and assistant-manager Matt Groves.

Rolls said: “We set out this year to stay up and keep the club on a good financial footing, and from our point of view we feel we are doing a good job.

“We are currently above the relegation zone, still in the FA Cup and are completely solvent and we think people should be happy with that.

“The next step is to try and make further progress on the pitch and having spoken with Brendon, we feel the only way we are going to do that is to potentially go full-time at some point with a group of young and hungry players.

“On the budget we are paying out at the moment we believe we could do that and we already know of a lot of players that would bend over backwards to become a part of it.”

Rolls went on to add: “A lot of people are still living in the past down here and they have got to realise that since the days of a cheque book chairman putting £3milllion into the club things have gone downhill.

“The harsh reality now is that Wey-mouth FC is a Southern League club and it may take three or four seasons to put things right, and the sooner some people accept that the better.”

King, who has come under criticism of late from a small section of supporters, also outlined some of the hurdles he is trying to overcome as manager.

He said: “Pre-season went too well in many respects. We beat a West Ham United XI and put in some good performances, and it raised people’s expectations.

“However, pre-season friendlies are a long way from the real thing and it is important we all try to look at the bigger picture.

“We are still looking at players and it is still very much a work in progress.

“People have also got to remember we are currently a part-time side and that some of the lads could probably earn more than they are getting for playing at the moment by doing a morning and afternoon paper round.

“Despite that those players are still taking half days at work and travelling all over the place to give their all for the club, and they deserve the utmost respect for that.

“A lot of people also say to me about getting players in from the Western and Wessex Leagues but most of the top players in those divisions are earning around £200-£250 a week and are certainly not going to travel all the way down here for less.

“That is just some of the challenges we face but we still have some good players with a lot of potential in the squad and if we keep adding to those and supporting them then I am confident we will make progress.”

Other main points made at the forum included:

* The playing budget for this season was initially set at £1,100, which included funds from the Wessex Fantasy Football initiative. That was raised to £2,800 at the start of the campaign thanks to the extra revenue from pre-season friendlies against West Ham and Gillingham. The budget now stands at just over £2,000 a week and at the end of last season was just under £3,700 a week.

* Gates are slightly down on what the club has budgeted for, which is an average attendance of 500 fans.

* The club has so far recorded £27,000 in turnover in terms of sponsorship.

* The board may be in a position to offer Sam Malsom a contract if the team wins their FA Cup replay at Hungerford tomorrow night.

* With his wife Amanda named as the club’s majority shareholder, Rolls admitted he still has a big say in the running of the club despite having claimed at the beginning of March that he was no longer a participant in Weymouth FC.

* Rolls also claimed if 10 local businessmen put in £5,000 each and came forward to take on the club as a hobby his family would walk away if it was in the best interests of the club.

* Rolls admitted publication of the club’s annual accounts is overdue but also insisted the board felt the £3,000 it costs to get them done would be better spent on the team at this moment in time.

* Plans for a new ladies’ team were also revealed after the board found out that the current Weymouth Ladies side is registered with the Dorset FA as a completely separate entity to Weymouth FC, despite playing their games free of charge at the Bob Lucas Stadium.

* Rolls also claimed the Weymouth FC Supporters Association has “died a death” and called on fans to help resurrect it.