Director Brian Fenton insists Bury have got to grips with their finances after recording a loss of £557,056 in the last financial year.

That contrasted sharply with a deficit of £115,861 in the previous 12 months, but a six-figure cut in wages, which equates to around 15 per cent, is likely to get the club back on a better footing over the next year.

Manager Alan Knill has been forced to lose some of the highest earners in his squad, with an emphasis being placed on youth as the Shakers plot a bright future on and off the pitch.

Explaining the loss, Fenton said: “A lot of the overheads we incurred came from two years ago when we pushed the boat out a little bit on the playing side and brought in some experienced players on good wages.

“That wasn’t a problem in the first year because we got into the play-offs, received television money and attracted higher attendances. That softened the blow when we didn’t get promoted.

“The problem last year was that we started off with the same budget because those players were on two-year deals. We had a potentially big game on Boxing Day against Bradford that was called off so the revenue suffered from that.

“The main disappointment was that we were there or thereabouts all season but we tailed away and didn’t get in the play-offs which probably cost us a six-figure income.”

Some tough decisions had to be made over the summer as the directors tried to strike a balance between stemming the losses and success on the pitch.

“We had a board meeting with the manager and we decided we needed to get the finances down by cutting the budget,” said Fenton. “We ripped up the teamsheet and started again, letting some of the older players on the good money go and replacing them with young players.

“Hopefully, by the end of the financial year we will have reduced the deficit drastically, or be breaking even, so we can start on a fresh footing next year.

“We are working hard to rectify what has gone before.”

By replacing older heads with youth, the club have given themselves a better chance of making money from the sale of players. But Fenton has warned any predators that star assets will only be sold at the right price.

“We have looked at the squad and we want younger players in there, so there is a worth to them,” he said.

“I am not saying that we have to give our players away. We want players that are worth something to the club and we are in a position where we can get the market value for them.”

The budget cuts have impacted directly on Knill, but Fenton has nothing but praise for the way his manager has turned out another promotion-chasing team.

“Alan has done a tremendous job,” he said. We didn’t want to start slashing everything in the football club and end up as a bottom four side but we had to balance it finely so that we cut the budget but made sure we competed at the right end of the league.”