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Halifax Town's darkest hours
HALIFAX Town today stands on the brink of disaster, with the threat of liquidation hanging over the club.
A crunch meeting yesterday had to be abandoned when major creditors refused to accept 2.5p in the pound in settlement of debts.
Instead, they demanded a minimum of 10p.
Administrator Rob Sadler now has to persuade potential new owners to increase the offer which would take their total outlay for taking control of the club to around 800,000, with running losses of up to 30,000 a month. Sadler also has to determine debts owed to HM Revenue and Customs.
He believes it is around 500,000 but the taxman believes it could be more and if that is proven then even the 10p deal would not be accepted.
Mr Sadler said if a deal was to be secured, it needed sorting quickly.
Under football rules, the offer to take the club out of administration would not be considered for 28 days and the Football Conference annual meeting is on June 7 when next season's membership will be ratified.
Mr Sadler said there was no guarantee the consortium would stump up the necessary cash.
"It has shown commitment but I don't know if the consortium can afford to put more money in," he said.
"I would understand perfectly if they said it was 'a bridge too far'."
The consortium have already spent more than 400,000 on the club without having any control. It has also agreed to pay the club's running costs through administration, costing another 100,000, and the administrators' fees.
The club is 2 million in debt and it would cost 200,000 to pay the 10p in the pound the creditors are asking for.
Two construction companies – Jacamast Ltd and R. M. Barnett Ltd, both of Huddersfield – are major creditors who rejected the 2.5p offer.
Roy Barnett is owed 195,000 and he said he could afford to walk away from the 5,000 on the table yesterday.
He said: "It is a tragedy the club has been allowed to carry on trading as long as it has.
"It has been insolvent and should have been closed down a number of years ago," he said.
If the club is saved but misses the Conference deadline, it would probably be relegated two divisions to the Unibond League.
If it goes into liquidation, any new club formed would have to start five divisions lower in North Counties East Division One.
That would put Halifax Town on the same level as Brighouse Town.
Roger Simpson, chairman of the Shay Stadium Trust, said the club's future was now on a knife edge and it remained to be seen if the consortium would increase their offer.
Mr Sadler adjourned the meeting to his offices at Begbies Traynor, Leeds.
Mr Sadler is the lead administrator and has been assisted by Peter Sargent, at the Halifax office of Begbies Traynor.
Mr Sargent said he hoped a deal could be struck between the consortium and creditors to make the CVA successful.
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Friday 10 February 2012
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