CHRIS Symes believes he must be the only person running a football club on his pension!

The Cornard United owner has used some of his pension to keep the Ridgeons League Division One club afloat since the start of the season.

Rob Batten suddenly withdrew from his bid to buy the club at the 11th hour last month, citing being unable to relocate offices for his London-based car business to the club before his current deal expired as the reason for the deal collapsing.

Symes, who is looking to recoup half the �50,000 overall investment he has made into the club via the sale, said: “I let him more or run the club for six months and took a step back while the paperwork was being done and then he pulled out.

“The club is still for sale. I have made it a limited company and sold 2,000 shares already, and I am hoping to sell 40,000 altogether.

“It has been a struggle to keep the club going. We lost our bar licence for three months which meant we lost �5,000 in revenue.

“I have had to put �1,000 of my own money in and must be the only person running a club on his pension!”

Symes, who has been involved at Cornard for 17 years and is manager of the club as well, is able to take some positives from events on-and-off the field so far this season.

Although they have played more games than the teams around them, Cornard currently sit four off the bottom of the Division One table.

“We finished bottom of the league last season, and hopefully we will be able to better that position this season.

“And we recently had a feather in our cap when we had the England Under-21 side train here. How many hundreds of non-league clubs would love to have England train on their pitch?” he said.

Symes was presented with a signed England shirt by Under-21 manager Stuart Pearce to add to the collection of around 70 displayed on the walls of the Blackhouse Lane clubhouse.

Cornard, who are without a game today, also recently scooped the Ridgeons League Fair Play Award for September and October, and will receive a cheque for �250.