HAMPSHIRE FA chief executive Lawrence Jones has hit back at claims that his organisation profits from handing out fines to grass-roots clubs, players and officials.

The county FA collected over £100,000 last season from fines and suspensions.

But Jones, pictured, defended his organisation over claims that indiscipline must provide a healthy source of income.

"We are a non-profit-making organisation. We employ three staff to deal with discipline and they have to be paid," he said.

"The money we receive also helps us to fund a wide range of development courses.

"It's a total misnomer that all the money we receive from discipline goes into a bank account and stays there."

While exact figures are unavailable, the Daily Echo took two disciplinary casebooks for 2002/03 at random and totted up the fines and costs handed out.

In one of them, for February, the total costs were over £2,000.

And in the other, for March, the total received was over £5,000.

Most of the players found guilty of offences were fined £10 with £7 costs, or £20 with £7 costs.

On an average of around £3,500 per week, that works out the Hampshire FA received over £110,000 from October through to May, though of course that is just an average costing.