Chairman Andy Tipp is confident there will be a Totton & Eling side playing at Millers Park next season, irrespective of who takes on the lease of the ground.

Totton & Eling Town Council, the ground owners, have invited tenders for the long-term lease of the Millers’ Little Testwood Farm HQ, stressing that the football club are “sitting tenants”.

It means that, for whoever takes it on, Totton & Eling come as part of the package.

Tipp, below, who is effectively running the Sydenhams Premier basement boys single-handedly as chairman and co-team manager, confirmed: “There’s a clause in the document when the ground was built that we have to play there.

“So if someone did take over the ground and maybe put in a 3G or 4G pitch, they would get us as a tenant unless this football club folded. And even if we (the men’s section) did fold, I’m sure the youth section would keep the club alive.

“We’ve got two under-18 sides who are getting more involved with the men’s team now. We’re working ever more closely together and we’re in the process of agreeing that four or five under-18s will come into the senior squad and sit on the bench or whatever.

“If the club did fold, I’m sure Rob Lomax would be keen to take his under-18s into a men’s division. It’s similar to what we did before in the old BAT days.”

With a new sponsor waiting in the wings to help the Wessex strugglers until the end of the season, there is some hope on the T&E horizon.

“At the moment the first-team committee is literally just me and I’m going to run it for the rest of the season and see what comes up,” said Tipp.

“There have been initial talks with people interested in the ground. Some are supportive of the football club, others aren’t, and those who aren’t know there’s nothing they can do (about Totton & Eling playing there) so it’s a put-off for them.”

Tipp’s more immediate concern is actually getting his players a game of football.

The Millers have been out of action since their 5-2 defeat at Folland Sports way back on December 27.

“We’ve had four games postponed since then and the lads are gagging to play,” he said. “We’re due to play Lymington Town away tomorrow and I just hope it’s okay.

“We’ve trained every week, kept ourselves sharp and everyone’s raring to go.”

While T&E have remained static at the foot of the table, second-to-bottom Fareham have won their last two, pulling them 13 points clear of the marooned Millers, who have lost 18 and drawn four of their 24 league games.

But Tipp said: “Our squad’s a lot better now than it was at the beginning of the season. If we can just get that elusive first win, I’m sure we could go on a bit of a run like Fareham are doing at the moment.”