The administrators announced this week that insolvency is inevitable if a deal cannot be reached.
Administrators Wilson Field agreed the sale of the club and its assets to the Sterling group last week and swapped coontracts, but the takeover deal is subject to approval by creditors - and guess who the biggests creditor is? George Reynolds!
Reynolds is unwilling to budge, meaning no deal can proceed, leaving the future of the troubled Division Three club looking very bleak indeed.
Reynolds said: "I don't really care what happens next. I wouldn't like to see the club close but if it did close, it would stop them all fighting over it."
Joint administrator David Field said: "Liquidation is looking likely. There are still opportunities to resolve it, but we're trading at a loss and we can't carry on."
Darlington Supporters' Trust is urging fans to sign an
Online petition to the Football League to step in and
change its rules to help relieve the log-jam at
Darlington FC. The situation at the club is getting
increasingly desperate and farcical. As the petition
states, the club could be sold under normal insolvency
rules, but the Football League regulations which
require all the creditors to agree to a sale leave the
future for Darlington FC looking bleak. It is very
likely that Darlington FC will go out of business.
http://www.petitiononline.com/dst0304/petition.html
Look out also for hard copies of the petition at
matches etc - add your name!
Last week, there were hopes that the Sterling
Consortium would be able to take Darlington FC out of
administration. But that appears, at least the time
being, like it will be held up by former chairman
George Reynolds. Meanwhile, the club's position is
critical.
The petition to the League reads:
Darlington Football Club was placed into
Administration on the 23rd December 2003 to avoid a
winding up order being presented by the Inland
Revenue. The full scale of debts at the club are still
be evaluated by the Administrators but are estimated
at anywhere from £6m to £30m, the largest creditor
being George Reynolds who resigned as Chairman earlier
this year.
One of the Club's secured creditors, a
finance organisation that loaned money to build the
Reynolds Arena, had reached agreement with the
Administrators to take the Club out of Administration,
but this has been blocked by ex-chairman Reynolds. Mr
Reynolds has over the last few months indicated that
he would accept 10p in the pound, but is now saying
that he will not agree to any sale of the club and
that it will close.
The Club could be sold under
normal insolvency rules, but the Football League
regulations which require all the creditors to agree
to a sale leave the future for Darlington FC looking
bleak. It is very likely that Darlington FC will go
out of business.
The rules, of the Football League as
they stand at the moment, are benefiting the people
who have caused the problems and penalise genuine
parties who could give clubs a realistic future.
We
therefore ask the Football League to relax their rules
on the procedures for club's coming out of
Administration in order to preserve the future of
Darlington Football Club.
Please follow the link:
http://www.petitiononline.com/dst0304/petition.html
See also www.darlotrust.co.uk
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