End For The Pars?

[ian1964 10,563]

[CammyF 7,130]

Looks very much like it Ian - just spoken to a friend who is a pars fan and he is under the impression that this pars are no longer

[54andcounting 0]

What is the difference from their situation to ours?

 

Can they not just do what we did..form a newco and keep all their history and rebuild in the 3rd division?

 

Please someone enlighten me

[The Real PapaBear 0]

as I understand it, 54&c, the company that owned Rangers Football Club was put into administration and its assets, i.e the football club, stadium etc, were sold to a different company by the administrators. In the DAFC case, the company is not going into administration but being wound up on the orders of HMRC - remember them? There is nobody selling the club or able to buy it. It's just going to cease to exist.

[54andcounting 0]

as I understand it, 54&c, the company that owned Rangers Football Club was put into administration and its assets, i.e the football club, stadium etc, were sold to a different company by the administrators. In the DAFC case, the company is not going into administration but being wound up on the orders of HMRC - remember them? There is nobody selling the club or able to buy it. It's just going to cease to exist.

Thanks TRPB...excuse my ignorance but administration and being 'wound up' appear to be completely different things that I'm not exactly on ship about.

 

Cheers mate.

[Juancornetto 1]

DAFC are only tenants in their own stadium. It's owned by Gavin Masterton's company(s) and was being leased back to them so, they can't go down the admin route and flog the assets because they basically don't have any. The "club" in this case probably amounts to a couple of filing cabinets and some office furniture. The players contracts will be ripped up.

 

It's straight to oblivion for Dunfermline Athletic. A proper phoenix club could be formed of course but they would have to apply for a completely new league share and associate membership of the SFA.

Edited March 16, 2013 by Juancornetto

[ian1964 10,563]

Dunfermline board could buy time by going into voluntary administration

Richard Wilson

Sports writer

Saturday 16 March 2013

 

The directors of Dunfermline Athletic are on the verge of voluntarily placing the club in administration.

 

The move would incur a points penalty for the first division team, but would stave off the immediate threat of liquidation, after Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs petitioned the Court of Session in Edinburgh to serve a winding up order.

 

That order has not yet been sanctioned, although notice is expected to be posted in the Edinburgh Gazette on Tuesday, which would then leave Dunfermline with eight days in which to raise £134,000 to pay the outstanding tax bill. The club's directors have been seeking investment, to no avail, and negotiations with The Pars Community, a collective of supporters who wish to buy the club, broke down yesterday.

 

TPC had set a deadline of 10am for their offer to be accepted by Gavin Masterton, Dunfermline's majority shareholder, but a deal could not be struck. TPC could, however, table an offer to the administrator, if appointed, to buy the club. They may consider this more likely to succeed, since distrust of Masterton runs deep. He is currently in Switzerland, having grown alarmed at the anger directed towards him and his family by some supporters in recent weeks.

 

However, there are potential complications to the directors' plan. An administrator can be appointed before the winding up order is served, but after that the court would need to be persuaded that administration is a better outcome for all concerned. HMRC would also have to agree to withdraw their petition. Once in administration, there is a moratorium on all the club's debts, and so breathing space for an offer to be made that is acceptable to the creditors.

 

An administrator would need to be certain that there is enough working capital to fund the business to the end of the season, and Dunfermline have serious cashflow problems. Only a little more than 60% of the players' wages were paid last month, and the March salary has yet to be paid. Funding can be provided by external sources during administration but that is done with no guarantee that the club will emerge from the process. As well as Masterton being the majority shareholder, he owns East End Park, Ltd, which owns the stadium and is heavily in debt to Lloyds Bank. Dunfermline owe £8.4m, much of it to directors, with £450,000 owing to business creditors. Events are likely to move swiftly next week, as attempts are made to try to save the club. There was only acrimony yesterday, though, as the two sides blamed each other for the breakdown in negotiations. TPC say they have raised £250,000, and blamed Masterton, who owns 94% of the club, for the failure to reach an agreement. In turn, the club chairman John Yorkston accused TPC of time-wasting and not being serious buyers. Yet members of the group have invested around £1m in the club in the last year alone.

 

"We had an agreement on Wednesday, then they reverted back to the old proposal - well aware that would derail the talks," Yorkston said. "Gavin called their bluff by agreeing to what they were after. It just shows what we thought all along, that they had no intention of dealing with us. They have just been nuisance value, mouthing off and there has never been any substance behind it.

 

"We had doubts regarding whether the group was in possession of the funds they claimed and we asked them to prove it earlier this week and they did not. We were certainly not putting all our eggs in their basket. We have had reservations about them from the start."

 

Brinksmanship was inevitable and there is an element of posturing in Yorkston's words. TPC, who plan a fan-ownership model, have stepped back but are prepared to buy the club out of liquidation. A similar outcome is possible if administration happens, but they also need to raise the funds to buy East End Park.

 

"TPC has worked tirelessly over many months and is extremely upset at the outcome," the group said in a statement. "It is extremely difficult to make a deliverable proposal to purchase a company which is showing signs of corporate distress without first being allowed access to up-to-date and accurate financial information. Before a transaction can be concluded, it is necessary to carry out a proper due diligence process to check the facts. There may be a can of worms waiting for the new owners."

 

http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/football/dunfermline-board-could-buy-time-by-going-into-voluntary-administration.20520124

[ian1964 10,563]

Deal for Dunfermline Fans on April 27th

 

Tuesday 19th March at 12:58

 

Although rivals on the pitch as a Club we have a great deal of sympathy with the current plight of Dunfermline Athletic and their players.

 

With that in mind we have put in place the following arrangements for our home game with them on Saturday April 27th.

 

Should Dunfermline bring more than 500 supporters to that we will donate the Net income from any surplus to Dunfermline on the understanding it goes directly to the players’ wages.

 

For this fixture only we will charge Dunfermline Under 16 supporters £5. All the money this generates, including those sold within the first 500 Dunfermline fans, will go directly to Dunfermline; again with the understanding that it used for players’ wages. Please note this is a strict one off and doesn’t replace our normal Kids Go Free policy.

 

We know that Dunfermline are working to a tight timescale at present, therefore, rather than wait until the game, tickets are on sale NOW by phoning 0871 402 1971 (calls cost 10p per minute plus network extras) and paying by credit/debit card. Tickets will then be available for collection on the day of the game. This means as soon as the 500 limit is reached we can start to forward money to Dunfermline.

 

http://ptfc.co.uk/news/2012-2013/march_2013/deal_for_dunfermline_fans_on_april_27th

[Gazza_8 233]

Is John Yorkston still in charge of DAFC?

[ian1964 10,563]

Dunfermline get seven days to pay £134k tax bill – or face going under

20 Mar 2013 07:30

 

PARS legend Jim Leishman admits it's touch and go to save the Fife side but hopes a fan-based takeover could be the solution to keep the club alive.

 

 

 

DUNFERMLINE have been given a week to pay their debt to the taxman or the 128-year-old club faces the prospect of liquidation.

 

The Pars owe £134,000 in unpaid tax arrears and HMRC published a public notice yesterday of the winding-up order they have served on the club.

 

That means the Fifers have until March 27 to settle their debt.

 

But club legend Jim Leishman has offered fans hope over the “mystery investors” who could save the Pars.

 

He is leading the steering group which is trying to rescue the Fifers through a fan-based takeover.

 

Dunfermline announced at the weekend that they were on the verge of “substantial investment” from unnamed parties.

 

Talks are continuing apace as due diligence is carried out on the club accounts but Leishman has revealed the mystery men are all Dunfermline fans.

 

It is thought that the Purvis Group, the club’s sponsors, and Craig McWhirter, a former director, are among the potential investors along with several local business figures.

 

Leishman said: “There are no ‘mystery’ investors. These people are Dunfermline supporters.

 

“There are those willing to invest £100 to those wanting to spend thousands. Then there are bigger potential investors who want to see the club go forward.

 

“Everybody is trying to avoid liquidation. That is what the steering group set out to do.

 

“We knew from the start we did not have much time. Seven days, that’s it. We have to find out as much as we can through due diligence. Everybody is a bit nervous just now.”

 

Leishman dismissed the idea of working with a Swiss-based investor sourced by chairman John Yorkston, as he seeks to guide Pars towards their aim of sustainable fan-ownership.

 

He added: “I have found out who he is and we would not recommend him to the fans.”

 

Even if the investors are now all but in place, the club face a fight to bring about a change of ownership in time to survive, with East End Park still owned by majority shareholder Gavin Masterton.