Ebbsfleet chairman John Moules has denied the club is in crisis.

MyFootballClub members voted this week to hand manager Liam Daish a £5,000 weekly budget – a cut of more than 50 per cent on last season.

It also means that the Fleet will only pay their squad for 43 weeks per year, rather than 52 weeks, effectively making them part-time regardless of training schedules.

However, Mr Moules said: "Liam is due to report back to the board when he is expected to outline his plans.

"It’s a fact that the budget is not what it was this time last season but it’s not that far adrift of the previous figure.

"It’s important to stress that Friends of the Fleet and others are working hard to step up their fund-raising by raising £2,000 a month which is a fantastic amount of money to put towards the budget.

"Memberships are being increased and I’m keen to put a positive spin on all that’s happening because it’s certainly not all gloom and doom. A lot of positives have emerged and it’s important to stress that we have no debts."

Fleet boss Daish, meanwhile, is facing up to the prospect of seeing his squad break up, with rival clubs starting to make their move for players whose contracts ran out at the end of April. Midfielder Danny Slatter has already joined Ryman League Billericay.

Daish said: "A few players are talking to clubs and I’ve had a few clubs contact me about players, which I expect as they are all good lads.

"They want to play at as high a level as possible and I hope that they get themselves sorted. It’s a shame to see them go."