Chairman David Green today voiced his concern at the widening gulf in income between Test and non-Test match counties after Sussex posted record losses for the second year running.

The county lost £631,366 in the year ending October 31, 2005, and Green admits it has become virtually impossible for Sussex, who do not stage international cricket, to punch their weight on the field and still make a profit.

Sussex are in the first division in both competitions this season for the first time in their history but the Championship's top flight is dominated by Test-match staging counties with only Surrey languishing in division two.

Green said: "Unless you have a Test match ground or some other large source of income it is now not possible to run a competitive first division side and balance the books. This situation makes life very difficult for the smaller counties and must be addressed."

His sentiments were echoed by Kent counterpart Carl Openshaw whose county made a record loss of £309,998.

But any move by smaller counties to get a bigger share of the ECB handout is bound to attract strong opposition from clubs staging England games.

Lancashire chairman Jack Simmons announced record profits of £580,164 last week and it is a similar story at Warwickshire whose surplus was over £750,000 thanks to the phenomenal success of a sold-out Ashes series.

Simmons said: "We had a good season because of the interest in the Ashes but what are we and the other Test match grounds going to do for the next three years until Australia come back again?

"Test match grounds have kept county cricket going through 30 or so years. When we didn't have the vast amount of money coming in from TV and radio, whatever the smaller counties got came from the revenue of putting bums on seats at Test match grounds."

Although Sussex have made another loss, their financial position is the best in their history thanks to the generosity of their former president Spen Cama.

The county received £9.5m from his legacy last year and have been told they could receive another £1m.

Interest on investing the windfall made Sussex nearly £300,000 alone and their operating surplus of just over £9m doesn't even take into account the value of the County Ground.

Once the exceptional legal costs incurred in administering the Cama bequest had been taken into account, Sussex's operating deficit was a more modest £63,500.

This is only slightly less than the reduction in the handout from the ECB which went down from £1.442m to £1.375m, despite the phenomenal success of last summer's Ashes series.

The level of ECB subsidy now includes a performance-related element relating to the number of English-qualified players counties have on their staff and the number who play for their country in age group teams right up to the Test side.

Sussex remain determined to produce more players from within their own structure and this is reflected in a £25,000 increase in expenditure on youth cricket.

Encouragingly, income streams from match receipts and sponsorship both went up. Gate revenue rose by £91,000 thanks to the expansion of Twenty20 cricket while marketing income increased by £48,000.

Cricket wages remained virtually unchanged at £1.446m and Sussex say they have no plans for to change their current policy whereby a small professional staff are well rewarded.

Much of the Cama legacy will be spent on improving the southern end of the ground although plans to start the development at the end of this season may have to be shelved.

There is no cricket at Hove after September 3 so Sussex could make an early start but issues relating to the lease of the Sussex Cricketer pub, which would be turned into luxury flats and a hotel under the scheme, are holding the project up and work may have to be delayed until the end of the 2007 season.