A STRUGGLING football club will have to step up its performance in the bar as well as on the pitch if fans are to drink it out of debt.

With Willington AFC owing nearly £4,000 to brewery Interbrew, striking a deal to pay it off in pints seemed the only way to stop the club from going under.

But the team's dismal efforts in the second division of the Albany Northern League - they have gone down 13-0 and 5-1 in the past two weeks - are not encouraging fans to stick around.

The club's financial plight is so desperate that chairman John Phelan is having to urge his players to drown their sorrows in the clubhouse bar.

He said last night: "We normally get through about ten barrels at 288 pints each month, but we are going to have to step it up to 30 barrels.

"Normally we like our players to keep off the drink because it slows them down on the pitch.

"But for now, we are reversing our advice and they can drink as much as they want - the more the merrier.

"At the same time, we need some better results to bring in the fans and make them stay around in the bar.

"We have to do all we can to save the club and that means having a pint in your hand whenever possible."

The crisis hit the club when they ended their contract with Interbrew and bought from a wholesaler, which left them owing money to the firm.

North-West Durham MP Hilary Armstrong acted as mediator to set up a repayment scheme which cuts the debt by £70 for every keg sold.