Owls are wise to Buildbase benefits

The FA have been running a special feature on last season's Northern Counties East champions this week after they were named as one of the winners of the 2017 Buildbase Club Renovation Programme a month before meeting fellow EVO-STIK League newboys South Shields in May's Buildbase FA Vase Final.

The Owls, second in EVO-STIK League South and chasing a second successive promotion, won a half share in a £100,000 product bursary with EVO-STIK League Southern Hanwell Town following a Dragons Den-style pitching event for six finalists at Wembley.

In an exclusive interview with theFA.com ahead of his side's trip to Buxton on Saturday in the first qualifying round, Cleethorpes vice-chairman David Mann explains how winning the product bursary has enabled the club to move back to its home ground while sharing tips on their winning formula and urging others to apply.

Mann, pictured below, said: "Winning the Buildbase product bursary has made a massive difference to us. We took over our club, Linden Homes Club, back in 2011. It was a sports and social club, and it was at the point where we took it on or it would close."

"Winning the Programme has already made a huge difference to us. There’s a buzz about the town, people are more interested in us than they’ve ever been. For us to get to Wembley was just incredible for a side of our size. We must be the smallest club ever to have got to Wembley, even in the Buildbase FA Vase."

To read the full article on the FA's website and learn how to apply to enter this season's competition, click here: http://www.thefa.com/news/2017/10/17/19/51/buildbase-renovation-programme-2018

Cleethorpes Town are one of 48 EVO-STIK League clubs kicking off in the Buildbase FA Trophy on Saturday with the top flight clubs entering Non-League's showpiece cup competition. For a full classified results service from today's league and cup action, head to the results pages from 4.45pm onwards as the final scores come in.

Images courtesy of nplfa.com

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