FA Cup TV decision leaves club chief ‘very bitter’ over massive financial hit

Doncaster Rovers host Crystal Palace in the FA Cup on Monday night but the decision to show it on BBC’s iPlayer rather than a main channel has left club frustrated

Doncaster Rovers are “pretty bitter” that their FA Cup fourth-round tie has been moved to Monday night despite it not being shown on terrestrial television.

Rovers chief executive Gavin Baldwin said the club will lose out on close to six figures following the BBC’s decision to only show the visit of Crystal Palace on iPlayer.

And the League Two promotion chasers are also expecting fewer fans to turn up compared to if it was a 3pm Saturday kick-off.

“We had no input whatsoever,” Baldwin told a Doncaster supporters’ forum. “If we’d have been on TV on the weekend it would have given us £125,000. But the iPlayer on a Monday night is £40,000 so it’s a massive difference.

“Equally it’s a lot harder for fans to get here. We were hoping it was going to be a Saturday where we could launch a lot of things the Matchday Experience Group has been hoping to do. From our point of view, we are pretty bitter.

“Replays have gone and you would have thought they would look after us by giving us a Saturday afternoon game but that has not happened.”

Palace boss Oliver Glasner, meanwhile, feels defender Ben Chilwell can hit the ground running following his loan move from Chelsea.

The England international arrived from Stamford Bridge on deadline day and could make his debut against Rovers after Blues boss Enzo Maresca decided that he was surplus to his requirements at the beginning of the campaign.

Glasner said: “Ben was always one of our top targets. He is Premier League experienced and it was also about who can help us immediately. He is doing really well in training. He is fit. The plan is he will get minutes at Doncaster.”

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