Southend claim Tilson's claims are inaccurate

Lincoln City manager Steve Tilson's claims that he is still owed money by Southend United have been described as "inaccurate" in a club statement on the Essex club's official website. It follows a press conference from Tilson on Thursday, where he said he was going to get the Football League involved if the matter wasn't resolved.

Tilson was put on gardening leave towards the end of last season after six seasons in charge at Roots Hall. Following the resignation of Chris Sutton, Steve Tilson was appointed as Lincoln City manager in October 2010, but the two parties disagree over whether Tilson has been paid up until that point or not.

In a statement to the Lincolnshire Echo yesterday, Steve Tilson said "I cannot go into too much detail due to ongoing legal proceedings with Southend. My lawyers are currently dealing with the matter and have made numerous requests for all monies owed to be paid. I have still yet to receive any appropriate response from Southend or their representatives. I hope the chairman of Southend will do the right thing morally as well as legally in light of the service I have provided. Unfortunately, should I fail to hear anything within the next few days, I will be forced to bring the matter before the Football League."

All of these comes just before the Imps host Southend for the first time since August 2004 and Tilson has also told the BBC that he doesn't even want to see Ron Martin (Southend Chairman).

""I don't feel I want to see the chairman at the moment. "I'll always be grateful to Ron for giving me the opportunity to manage the club but I'm disappointed at what's gone on."

However, this battle appears to inevitably heading into legal proceedings after Southend denied still owing Tilson money in a statement that appear on their official website.

The statement reads "Southend United refute the allegations and claims made by Steve Tilson. The accusation that there has been no dialouge between the two parties is categorically not true. What is correct is any communication from Steve Tilson or his representatives have been responded to in a quick and timely manner."

"In addition there has been no communication whatsoever from either Steve Tilson or his representative since last year, until yesterday when a latter was received by the club's lawyers, which will be dealt with accordingly. Notwithstanding, we can confirm Steve Tilson's wages up until the point he chose to become manager of Lincoln City are up to date."