George Street-Bridge wrote:That makes it sound as ominous for Port Vale as it does for Bury. Could he sell Vale's ground out from under them, invest heavily in Bury and thumb his nose at a now homeless Vale?

Would be all the more reason for the League to get shot of Bury as soon as possible.

Actually he has agreed to sell the PVFC ground to the new PVFC owners via an instalment plan. So depending on how serious he is about Bury this may actually play into PVFC's hands as he'll need to extricate himself from the ground arrangement (two more years to go, I think).

George Street-Bridge wrote:That makes it sound as ominous for Port Vale as it does for Bury. Could he sell Vale's ground out from under them, invest heavily in Bury and thumb his nose at a now homeless Vale?

Would be all the more reason for the League to get shot of Bury as soon as possible.

I don't know enough about Bury to comment on what should happen to them.

However I can't really see the logic of Bury should be punished because someone you don't approve of has expressed an interest in buying them.

I don't know the minutiae, but I think I'm on firm ground saying Bury have brought the league into disrepute by putting together a team they couldn't really afford and that alone should have seen them kicked out long ago or at very least barred from promotion. Obviously with the play-off losers promoted instead!

My point about Smurthwaite was based on him still owning Port Vale's ground, which it now seems he doesn't. I'd be wary of the potential for putting the skids under one club to make it possible to buy another. Ancient history, but I suppose that's what happened when Maxwell jumped ship from Oxford and took over Derby.

Here's something I just found. On the Manchester Evening News website.

Here’s the quotes from Steve Dale’s latest chat to TalkSport, where he’s called for fans and local businesses to help.

‘
“Fans, anyone out there who will pledge money to come to us. If they come to us and say we’ll put £100 in, £1000 in, if the big players put in £100,000, £500,000, whatever it is, we want it pledged to the company.

“We need a pledge of £2.7m plus to save Bury. If the company, Bury Football Club, needs the money and needs to use it, they’ll put up shares and pay 2.5% interest on that money.

“We don’t need it, let me say that, unless the EFL pull another stroke. If we take any money off someone we’ll pay interest on it and we will secure it on shares in the club.

“Let me make this clear, we’re not looking for charity here, because we don’t need it. But the EFL want it. The EFL have made this ridiculous claim that we need this money, but we’re saying we don’t!”


Does any of that make sense? Does it sound as if he has an offer to put before the EFL.

And this from Phil Neville.

“ It’s probably the biggest day in their history today, one of the founding members of the football league.


“Today, I think by five o’clock, Bury, the town itself, might not have a football club. I think it’s absolutely disgraceful.

“My Mum has worked there for 30 years, my Dad’s got a stand named after him and to consider today that they might not have a football club is for me, it’s so upsetting.”

I too think it's absolutely disgraceful, but I don't think we're coming at it from the same angle.

Stan A. Einstein wrote:

JonD wrote:This extension is, as I understand it, dependent on Dale reopening negotiations with Norman Smurthwaite.

Norman prides himself on having never lost out on a deal. Assuming he gains control at Bury (ominously one thing in his way is that he still owns Port Vale's ground) then Bury fans should buckle up. They're going to get shafted.

Going to get shafted?

Ha ha. I suppose I should've qualified that.

Norman bought PVFC out of administration, so acquired a club with zero debts, and after a brief honeymoon there began a farcical sequence of events that took them to the brink of falling out to the league

He's also done a bit of damage in the meantime at Nuneaton Town FC. He's a multi-tasker, old Norm.

excessbee wrote: Does any of that make sense? Does it sound as if he has an offer to put before the EFL.

Well, it sounds of desperation for one thing.

excessbee wrote:We need a pledge of £2.7m plus to save Bury ..

because we don’t need it. But the EFL want it. The EFL have made this ridiculous claim that we need this money, but we’re saying we don’t!”

And there is the nub of the issue. The EFL requires proof of the money. And that proof is obviously not there, since SD2 needs a pledge of £2.7m (not quite sure how that figure is arrived at w/o checking).


Then there's this:

Speaking to the PA news agency, Smurthwaite said: “The EFL knows I have the resources and experience to buy Bury and get it back on its feet.

“That would require an investment of £4.5million to settle the club’s debts and fund the team this season. But it would also need the lender that has a £3.6m charge on the ground to accept what the land is really worth, about £1.5m.

“If Stewart Dale accepted that neither he nor any of his associates get anything from the CVA, or any other payment, then l am willing to step in. They are the two conditions of my offer.”

Smurthwaite explained that Dale told him he wants at least £1million for his share of the club debt that he and his business partners control.

But even if Dale was to drop that demand, Smurthwaite thinks Bury are doomed.

The ex-chair of the ex-Gatesdead FC has also been sniffing round, I see.

Latest EFL statement

The EFL Board has this afternoon been appraised of the very latest position in respect of ongoing matters at Bury Football Club.

As of 5pm there has been limited progress made either by the current ownership providing the required evidence in regard to outstanding financial information, or through a change of control being achieved with new owners.

The EFL will continue to provide all support available and will keep working to find a resolution to the ongoing issues ahead of the Notice of Withdrawal deadline, which remains at 11.59 PM on Friday 23 August.

If a successful solution is not found ahead of tonight’s deadline, the Club’s share in the EFL will be withdrawn and its membership in the League will come to an end.

The EFL will move to confirm the position as soon as possible, with an update to be provided on Saturday 24 August.

The BBC reported last night that according to Dale a sale had been agreed with Alistair Campbell's son, Rory. However Rory is quoted in The Guardian as saying he's been in discussions over a purchase for ten weeks but needs more time to fully investigate the financial situation at Bury.

It's all very strange. The alleged buyers have been in the background for ten weeks, yet the announcement is made about twenty minutes before the deadline. Dale was appealing for pledges yesterday morning. Apparently the EFL will make a statement this morning. Wouldn't it be ironic if Bury seek an extention and thus need there to be further suspended matches after complaining it was the EFL that was preventing them from playing. I think they should now be asked to play, effectively suspend the result not the fixture. This season, promotion and relegation could depend upon goal difference - who scores the most against Bury and Bolton. Any delay in the process would push Bury beyond the transfer deadline. Have they got enough players on the books?

Yes, it is all a bit strange.

I don't find it strange that they've been looking for x weeks and put in a bid at the last minute, as the club hasn't really been up for sale until the last week and technically they wouldn't be able to look at the books/do due diligence until they were a preferred bidder (at least that's my understanding).

What is strange is that (1) there appears to be a 'family connection' between the current Bury chairman and one of the buying partners (possibly his daughter's partner(?) – not Campbell) and (2) the potential buyers on the face of it appear to lack the necessary funds (both based on reported info on the Rochdale forum).

Seems there's an EFL conference call going on with board at the moment.

excessbee wrote:Any delay in the process would push Bury beyond the transfer deadline. Have they got enough players on the books?

That wouldn't be an issue, as there are plenty of out-of-contract players they could legitimately sign and play. And I think they have 7 or 8 players signed, one of which is our OB Tom Miller.

I too have been getting clues from the Rochdale forum. I'm not sure about the family connection. I think one person stated that, but I read it that a major chunk of the debt was 'bought' by a company set up a couple of weeks before the CVA was approved, thus effectively enabling the CVA to be accepted. It was this company that apparently is the link to Dale's family....... Allegedly, of course.

If you haven't come across it already, then this Guardian piece is a real eye-opener!

A fascinating read that. Gives an in depth analysis of how things have come to a head with a few years of misfortune and mismanagement. Everyone seems to be blaming everyone else and the current financial situation. I would love to see a new Guardian take on it as that report was dated 19 June.