Gretna FC facing imminent shutdown

ADMINISTRATORS for Gretna FC are seeking a massive injection of cash by Thursday or face the immediate closure of the club, it was revealed this afternoon.

The appointed adminstrator, David Elliot of Sheffield-based Wilson Field, claims Gretna will be "finished" if they cannot immediately produce 30,000.

"Unless Gretna get 30,000 by lunchtime tomorrow the club is finished," he told reporters this afternoon in Gretna Green.

"We need to find 30,000 to enable the club to fulfil its fixture on Saturday," Elliot said, referring to Gretna's scheduled Scottish Premier League match at Aberdeen on Saturday. "That is emergency funding for wages and overnight stay and transport."

The warning this afternoon came with confirmation from Elliot that the administrators have held talks with one unidentified party who could be willing to provide the necessary funds to keep the club going on a short-term basis. However there is no guarantee of those talks yielding a positive outcome, and the outlook for the Borderers looked more gloomy than ever.

"I would not allow people to work and not be paid their wages," Elliot said. "If I can't see that they can be paid their wages then I would have to stop."

The SPL are unwilling to release a cash advance to the Raydale Park club unless they can prove themselves a viable proposition as a business. The league have stated they could allow Gretna to receive money due to them later in the season, but they want to be assured the club are capable of staying in business for the rest of the campaign before paying out.

"The club is under immense pressure from creditors," Elliot said. He said two former Gretna managers were claiming money, one for 800,000 and the other for 100,000. The Inland Revenue are owed 350,000 by the club, he added.

Hire-purchase payments on cars are also outstanding, and Elliot anticipates further claims.