Chief executive Nigel Clibbens has moved to reassure fans that Carlisle United are “looking ok” despite the serious financial challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic.

The director said the virus will have slashed the club’s income by about £1.5m.

But Clibbens says the financial help United have received, along with other measures, have mitigated their losses.

And he said that while a tough period remains ahead, Carlisle have so far managed the situation as best they could.

“Going right back to June of last year I think I said that each month we lost fans it was an equivalent of about £150,000 of income at risk,” he said.

“That’s commercial, retail and ticket income. That’s where we thought we would be from June, and as we’ve gone through the last three months of last year, and then the first six months until the end of December, that [prediction] has proved to be very, very accurate

“In terms of some headlines, our season tickets are down by about £125,000, our walk-up income is down by about £250,000 and our commercial activities are down by about £150,000.

“That’s over £500,000, give or take, in the first six months of the year that has actually gone, on top of the three months from the end of last season.

“That’s where we are as we sit here now. We’re now faced with another three to four months of trading this season, because obviously once we get to May we don’t have much income anyway.  There’s another four months or so of that rate of loss to come.

“Over the 18-month period we’ll around £1.5m down in terms of our income.

“Going back to June, and even before that, we’ve been looking at ways to mitigate that monthly loss, so we’ve had the benefit of furlough grants, and that goes back to March last year when it was first introduced. We’re actually still claiming furlough for some people now.

“We’ve had the benefit of the EFL bailout, which came from the Premier League, and we received £360,000 from that.

“We’ve saved significant amounts of costs by not having fans here, so that has helped, and we’ve had income from players sales on top of that.

“All of those go into the pot to balance out the big loss of income.

“Right now we’re looking ok, we can deal with that over the 18-month period, and it’s really good and comforting to know that’s the case.”

Clibbens says United have so far not drawn on any external help, whether that be funding from shareholders or Edinburgh Woollen Mill, the club’s long-standing backers who recently went into administration before being sold.

“With all of this together we’re reasonably well-placed, but it is difficult,” he added.

“Every single week is difficult and with the extension that means effectively fans are ruled out for the entire season now, we’re looking at it being difficult week after week as we look to make up income losses going forward.”

Clibbens said the Premier League support package of £50m for Leagues One and Two was “a real lifesaver for clubs”.

He added: “£30m of that was originally allocated in direct payments, which all of the clubs have had. That leaves £20m available as loans in really distressed situations. That’s for clubs that are literally struggling and facing ruin.

“We’re not in that position so I don’t see that, as we sit here, as a route for us to be able to access any of that money.

“If it came to that, we’d hope that there’s something left if we needed it. Discussions are still ongoing about how to allocate that money. We haven’t drawn on it at this stage and we have no plans to.”

The chief executive, meanwhile, said United expect to bring in more than £250,000 over the course of the season from the iFollow streaming service.

The live streaming of games has been a lifeline to fans who have been prevented from attending matches because of Covid.

It has also proved a very useful source of income to the Blues.

“It’s been really important in helping to make up that gap,” Clibbens said.

“After 21 games we were at £138,000 and if you work that up for a full season you’re probably looking at over £250,000.

“That’s really welcome and it goes to putting us in the position that we’re in now.

“It’s been really interesting how it’s tracked,” he added. “We started off really strongly then we kind of reached a plateau. We had the break [in January], and since that break the numbers have got even better.

“It is really interesting and I think the fans have grasped it. A lot of the initial teething troubles have gone away and they’ve got really comfortable with signing up and using it.

“Winning matches helps, so we’ve seen the numbers grow and, again, it’s big numbers and we need it to continue to thanks for the support from everybody who tunes in and uses it.

“What I do know is that when you have three games in eight days and that goes on and on for weeks and months the cash cost mounts up, so we’re grateful for everybody who does subscribe.”

Asked whether there was any prospect of further bailout money in the future, given the uncertainty that remains over the return of supporters to grounds, Clibbens said: “I think it’s a bit uncertain at this stage.

“The bailout was discussed on the basis that it was to cover clubs for the current season, to the end of this season.

“At that point we didn’t know when fans would be back, but the principle was that was the support for this season.

“I’m not expecting that there’d be more money in respect of this season, because a line’s been drawn under that. They’ve got this £20m fund which some of it will have been issued to some clubs.

“I’ve seen reports that some clubs have had some money out of it, so that would be the option, for clubs needing more this season, I think.”