Wrexham FC Face Expulsion From Football League
Last updated : 16 November 2004 By Nach0king
I'll tell you what it has to do with Morton - most people reading this will know just how close our beloved 'Ton came to disappearing from league football forever. It was only a few years ago, yet with our highly-paid full-time squad, vastly improved stadium and benevolent chairman, it could have been a lifetime ago.
But not all clubs have been as fortunate as ours. Wrexham FC are the latest to suffer at the hands of the harsh economic footballing climate and a chairman with dollar signs in his eyes. I personally know very little about the history of Wrexham FC or its financial affairs, but it seems likely that this isn't
just a case of typical overspending. Rather, the club's chairman seems determined to cash in on the team's ground. Whatever the cause, the consequences could be dire. This article was published by ClubsInCrisis, giving more details:
PRESS RELEASE - 16 November 2004
Thousands of fans unite to save Wrexham FC
TENS of thousands of football fans are putting aside tribal differences on
Saturday in a mass display of unity to save one of the football league's oldest
clubs.
The Fans United day of action on Saturday 20 November will see peaceful
demonstrations at every football ground in England and Wales as well as a huge
gathering of fans from different clubs at Wrexham FC's Racecourse Ground.
On Wednesday 17 November Wrexham FC faces a winding-up petition in the High
Court. The action is being brought by the Inland Revenue for £900,000 of unpaid
tax.
On Wednesday Wrexham FC faces the prospect of being placed into administration
and docked 10 points by the Football League or even forced into liquidation. If
the latter occurs, Wrexham will be the first football league club to go out of
existence since Aldershot FC in 1992.
Many fans believe the club's plight is due to its owner Alex Hamilton, who wants
to sell the ground for over £6million to property developers.
In any case Wrexham FC is living on borrowed time after 132 years of league
football.
Now supporters of Brighton and Hove Albion - who lost their own ground almost
nine years ago - are leading a day of action to draw attention to Wrexham's
plight.
Fans United: football fans are being invited to wear their club colours and
attend Wrexham's home game against Bristol City on Saturday 20 November -
kick-off 3pm. They are asked stand alongside Wrexham fans and watch what could
be Wrexham's last ever league game.
Wear Red for Wrexham: those fans who cannot make the trip to the Racecourse are
asked to wear something red - or even carry a piece of red card - to their own
team's match on the same day. They are asked to stand for 15 seconds at the
kick-off to their match to show solidarity with Wrexham FC.
A Fans United spokesman and life-long Brighton supporter Nic Outterside said:
"It is 12 years since Aldershot FC went bust and in that time many other
football clubs have gone to the brink. In many cases these crises have been due
to mismanagement or sheer greed of club owners or chairmen.
"When we lost our own ground - sold by our chairman Bill Archer to build a
retail park - we came within inches of going out of existence. Even now our club
is homeless and survives on a season by season basis.
"The danger of Wrexham folding is real and it would create a domino effect which
could see many more towns lose their football clubs forever.
"I urge every right thinking football fan to take part in next Saturday's day of
action."
Further information:
website: www.clubsincrisis.com
email:
fansbehindwrexham@hotmail.com
Even if tomorrow's winding-up order doesn't go ahead, the club may not be out of the woods. Two options remain: either the club goes into voluntary administration - the preferred choice of many fans - or a takeover bid from Mark Guterman is accepted. Guterman seems to be something of a Mike Peden figure down Wrexham way, leading many fans to believe that the more extreme method of keeping the club alive - as painful and drastic as that may be - may in fact be best for the Dragons.
For more details, see:
http://www.red-passion.com/http://sport.scotsman.com/latest.cfm?id=3764292icWales Article
