06 November 2012

Updated article by Jack Murley on City's £4m owed to creditors

Source : BBC Link

Truro City could owe creditors almost £4m, according to a report compiled by the club's administrator.

The report also states an agreement to sell the club's Treyew Road ground is currently "under investigation".

Truro City are currently searching for new owners after entering administration earlier this year.

Local businessmen Peter Masters and Philip Perryman are preferred bidders, after putting up a £50,000 bond to allow the club to continue to play.

The report has been written by the club's administrator Kate Breese and has been submitted to the High Court of Justice Chancery Division.

But Masters says the amount they owe could come down.

"Everyone's got to prove their claims and I've made my own assessment," he told BBC Radio Cornwall.

"I've got to speak to all the creditors individually.

"It's a fantastic amount of money, but if you look at the whole situation, you had a wage bill of £25,000 per month and a you had a gate of 330 on average, so you can begin to understand the problem."

Truro went into administration after owner Kevin Heaney went bankrupt in August.

According to the report the club owes creditors a total of £3,901,352, with two creditors owed £1m each. Irish firm BCK is owed £1.5m while director Yulia Sincock is owed £1,006,180.

Tiger Commercial, which was a company set up to run the club's commercial affairs, has a claim for £645,000 while former chairman Kevin Heaney's firm Cornwall Properties Limited is owed £355,000.

One of the major issues to be resolved before a takeover can be completed is a deal for the club to continue to play at Treyew Road.

The ground is owned by JoJo Investments Limited, who bought before the club went into administration.

"Everyone wants a definitive statement on what happened to the ground and how it got sold under the football club," Masters said.

"What we're trying to do is ensure that Truro City Football Club continues playing at the ground, that's the overriding factor of everything and trumps everything.

"Once we are in a position to have a full picture behind us we will go forward at a rate of knots."

Masters and Perryman's firms have been paying the players wages of around £5,500 per week as well as the club's other running costs.

"There are lots of costs going out and we need to do a deal sooner rather than later," Masters added.

"What we want to do is to secure a deal quickly, if i can do one this week I'll do it."

Truro City financial timeline

  • September 2011 - Truro face winding-up order for unpaid taxes
  • June 2012 - High Court told debts total more than £700,000
  • August 2012 - Truro players threaten to quit after not getting wages
  • August 2012 - Owner Kevin Heaney declared bankrupt
  • August 2012 - Truro enter administration
  • September 2012 - Players set 2 October deadline and Football Conference sets one for nine days later for takeover
  • September 2012 - Football Conference set 11 October deadline for takeover
  • 3 October 2012 - Players agree to stay on until 11 October
  • 11 October 2012 - Deadline to save the club passes with no deal
  • 12 October 2012 - City given extension until 18 October
  • 18 October 2012 - Deal for £50,000 bond is agreed with Football Conference
  • 22 October 2012 - Pete Masters and Philip Perryman agree to pay wages and have until 4 January to buy the club
  • 5 November 2012 - Claims of almost £4m are revealed

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