Jump to content

Pompey Takeover Saga

Fitzhugh Fella

By Fitzhugh Fella,
in Golden Posts

 Share

Recommended Posts

fanimal

fanimal

Posted
Posted

Portsmouth COMMUNITY Football Club - that just sums it all up - having shafted local businesses, charities, council, they have the gall to call themselves a Community Club. What a sick bunch of hypocritical naysayers. Quicker they hit Admin 4 the better. WTFILN.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
The9

The9

Posted
Posted
So the cheating c**** have got away with 10 points deduction this season by all accounts . What's the point in a deduction if it is not going to hurt . Can we sue the fa /fl for the way they treated us if the skates don't suffer .

 

1) Football League, nothing to do with the FA and hasn't been since their Prem relegation

2) If you don't know which organisation to sue, I suspect the case would not be that successful. ;)

3) They haven't been deducted the 10 points yet so you'd be jumping the gun

4) Our case was completely different.

 

Other than that, good luck ! :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites
The9

The9

Posted
Posted (edited)

FWIW here's the full text of the conditions of Portsmouth playing in L1 in 2012/13 again :

 

The Board of The Football League has agreed to make an offer of membership to the eventual purchaser of Portsmouth Football Club.

 

The offer is subject to the successful bidder accepting a number of conditions that seek to ensure the sporting integrity of league football and the financial viability of the Club going forward.

 

The Football League Board has absolute discretion as to whether to admit any new company as a member of The League. In doing so, it has to strike a balance between giving a club another chance and the effect this has on sporting competition between clubs. Through its Insolvency Policy, The League aims to secure the continuation of the club in its local community. In seeking to achieve this it requires that:

 

a) all football debts have been settled in full (although these may be compromised by mutual agreement).

 

b) creditors have been given the opportunity to indicate their satisfaction (or otherwise) at the proposed arrangements (normally through the acceptance of a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA)).

In Portsmouth's previous administration, a significant amount of unsecured debt was compromised in a CVA approved by creditors in June 2010, with an anticipated outcome of twenty pence in the pound. In the event, these creditors had not had their claims settled prior to the Club's further administration in February 2012.

 

Under the new CVA these claims would be further compromised to less than one penny in the pound without creditors having the opportunity to indicate whether they find this acceptable. This is because the claims rest in the liquidation of the previous company and the liquidator of that company has voted to accept the terms of the new CVA.

 

Therefore, the Board were faced with the prospect of numerous unsecured creditors receiving less than one penny in the pound, without having the opportunity to indicate their satisfaction (or otherwise) in the normal way. In the Board's view, these arrangements do not respect a key principle of The Football League's Insolvency Policy (as described above in b).

Therefore, as a condition of membership, any new company established to apply for ownership of Portsmouth Football Club's share in The Football League will be required to:

 

1. Accept a deduction of 10 points in the 2012/13 season;

2. Agree that only a limited proportion of the secured debt from the previous club can be carried forward into the new company as secured debt.

3. Pay all football creditors in full, unless mutually acceptable compromise agreements are put in place.

 

4. Agree to a range of other restrictions on playing budgets, future borrowing and loan repayments for the next 5 seasons.

It will now be for the administrator to seek to finalise arrangements for the sale of the club with interested parties. The Board will consider the application for transfer of membership once the administrator has selected the final purchaser.

 

So other than the FL Board "considering the application for transfer of membership" - which I believe was covered in December :

 

The Football League Board has received details of a proposal by Pompey Supporters' Trust (PST) and its partner investors, to acquire the assets and certain liabilities of Portsmouth Football Club.

 

Having considered the proposal in detail, the Board concluded that it had significant merit. However, two outstanding points will have to be resolved before the Board can fully consider PST's application to become the new owners of Portsmouth Football Club.

 

They are the outcome of the current High Court proceedings relating to the ownership of Fratton Park and PST raising the remaining funding from supporters that is anticipated in its business plan.

The Board also confirmed that on-going membership of The League would be subject to a number of conditions that seek to ensure the sporting integrity of league football and the financial viability of the Club going forward.

 

It therefore re-affirmed its earlier decision that these conditions would include a deduction of 10 points (applicable at the point of transfer of share) and a range of other restrictions on playing budgets and future borrowing for the next four seasons.

 

...I think that's the end of it. They've managed to sound like they've protected the League's integrity but will have completely failed to actually do it. However, it has taken the Skates being relegated anyway to dodge an effective punishment, and that's not such a problem.

Edited by The9
Link to comment
Share on other sites
The Kraken

The Kraken

Posted
Posted
to be honest, even if they were given +10 points to start next season, they will still struggle and finish in the bottom half dozen.

 

They really shouldn't. Even with the -10, they will have resources that will exceed pretty much every other club in the division. Anything less tha playoffs with -10 will be failure (as it was for us in year 1 of League 1). If they avoid the minus 10 next year and still don't go up, I'll laugh my arse off.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
ant

ant

Posted
Posted (edited)

So roughly what percentage do we think the fans actually own? I see there's a few media outlets starting to trot out the skates' self-perpetuated 'biggest supporter-owned club' nonsense.

 

No point concluding this thread - they'll surely be back in trouble in the blink of an eye.

 

You have to wonder what sort of antics they'll get up to this weekend... They'll burn through that trust money before you can "parachute payment" at this rate.

Edited by ant
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Colinjb

Colinjb

Posted
Posted
No point concluding this thread - they'll surely be back in trouble in the blink of an eye.

 

Without doubt.

 

They consider themselves to be the 'bestest,' they will want to spend money to quickly right the perceived wrongs of their three relegations. If this doesn't happens their crowds will dwindle. If it does they will be back at the begging bowls in months.

 

Super fun happy times for all concerned!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
The9

The9

Posted
Posted
@colinfarmery: I was proud when Pompey won the FA Cup, which was an amazing achievement, but what ordinary Pompey fans have done puts it in the shade. Wow!

 

Gee, if only they'd realised that they'd be happier in the League One relegation zone with no money, when they were running up massive debts spunking money on players they couldn't afford.

 

They could have just not bothered to enter the Prem or the FA Cup in 2007, asked to be moved to League Two with some local businessmen and a property developer running things, and saved themselves 6 years of wasted time pretending to be gloating about cheating to win things and playing in tournaments they really didn't care about.

 

Either that or he's talking absolute b0110cks.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
The9

The9

Posted
Posted (edited)
They really shouldn't. Even with the -10, they will have resources that will exceed pretty much every other club in the division. Anything less tha playoffs with -10 will be failure (as it was for us in year 1 of League 1). If they avoid the minus 10 next year and still don't go up, I'll laugh my arse off.

 

It will be interesting to see what the financial restrictions the FL place on them as per "a range of other restrictions on playing budgets, future borrowing and loan repayments for the next 5 seasons."

 

But before that, what if the PDT haven't met the FL's conditions for "agree[ing] only a limited proportion of the secured debt from the previous club can be carried forward into the new company as secured debt" ?

Edited by The9
Link to comment
Share on other sites
Kingsbridge Saint

Kingsbridge Saint

Posted
Posted

Lots to come from the FL yet - I reckon they will be as interested in the 'add ons'/carrying forward of debt as we are. If the DFCSB's have reached an agreement that in any way tries to be smart with the FL conditions I think there will be consequences. Once they are in the Conference i will feel justice has been done. They aren't off the radar of football sufficiently enough to atone for their disgusting behaviour yet. I am still yet to meet a Skate who isn't a complete w4nker.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
The9

The9

Posted
Posted
to be honest, even if they were given +10 points to start next season, they will still struggle and finish in the bottom half dozen.

 

I think with their average position in the past 40 years being somewhere around the ar5e end of the second tier (must check that), it'll be at most 3 years before they're back in L1, assuming they stick within the FL's conditions and are responsible with their finances. Of course, that would be unprecedented.

 

Theoretically, they have finally found a level where they *are* a big club, and Luton-sized crowds of 10,000 in the bottom league (which will grow at a sniff of success) should be enough to give them a legitimate competitive advantage - assuming of course that they don't have to spend every spare penny on paying back the debts they supposedly don't have.

 

I'll be interested to see how long it takes for the PST to get bored or infuriated and sell up to the first dubious foreign warmonger claiming to have 10 bazillion dollar dollar and needing to launder some cash, though.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
The9

The9

Posted
Posted (edited)
Has the share been transferred yet? Will it be transferred this season?

 

The club has been taken over, but the share hasn't been transferred, we're awaiting the FL to confirm that.

 

They have said on 10th December 2012 that "these conditions would include a deduction of 10 points (applicable at the point of transfer of share)".

 

And in February :

http://www.football-league.co.uk/footballleaguenews/20130207/portsmouth-statement_2293334_3068475

 

The League has informed the Administrator that it will not currently consider transferring the Club's share in The Football League to a new bidder. This means that in the event that the PST bid does not succeed and Portsmouth do not exit administration before the end of the current playing season, the Club will lose its membership of The Football League.

 

Now they have avoided that problem by exiting administration before the end of the playing season (note emphasis on playing which would have answered all of the "do they mean April 27" arguments if people had noticed!), but they've only got to the point of the FL Board evaluating their new owners and whether to accept them as members of the League.

 

I suppose there's nothing stopping the FL Board looking at it all and saying "we'll transfer the share on these conditions" and still hitting them with an actual punishment if they want to. I'm like a bloody yo-yo on this, truth is, I'm pretty sure the FL will do as it's said with the -10 for being in L1, but we still don't know whether the FL Board will choose to impose additional conditions on their receipt of the golden share.

Edited by The9
Link to comment
Share on other sites
The9

The9

Posted
Posted

Oh, and for those still paying attention, I just chucked some data into a spreadsheet and Portsmouth's average league position since 1973/74 (i.e. the last 40 years) is 36.3. With 20 teams in the Prem, that's the equivalent of a hearty 16th in the Championshi

 

That's 30 places above where they currently are, and 33 places above the best possible position they can achieve next season. :).

 

Ours...? I didn't check, but with 29 years in the top flight compared to their 8 in that period, it's going to be a lot higher than that.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
The9

The9

Posted
Posted (edited)

Just done Saints, an average position of annoyingly just Prem-relegated 18.4 !

 

So, for the last 40 years we've averaged finishing 18th in the top league, and they've averaged 16th in the second tier. However, let's not forget that they are the bestest, and really huge, and community owned, and we are jealous of their bestest super-loud fans who definitely didn't all bugger off when they plummeted down the leagues and all that stuff. :rolleyes:

 

I wonder how many turn up tomorrow and decide they're not coming back until they're playing some decent teams, rather than tiny clubs like (top league one attendances in 2012/13) Sheffield United ?

Edited by The9
Link to comment
Share on other sites
trousers

trousers

Posted
Posted (edited)

@blueballoo2000: @DanKing_1974 @david_conn @owen_g @pkelso @mattslaterbbc @sportingintel @NabilHassan79 @pn_neil_allen brought honour to journalism #pompey

 

Yep, they did really well in doggedly perusing the publication of the PDT's 'ready to go' business plan updates, the agreement between Birch and Chainrai, etc, etc....take a bow folks...

 

@NabilHassan79: @blueballoo2000 Thank you Michah, and all the best for the future. (Probably see you at the presser on Monday).

 

Carlsberg don't do sycophancy, but if they did...

Edited by trousers
Link to comment
Share on other sites
trousers

trousers

Posted
Posted
The League didn't realise quite how sheite they are.

 

When they set the -10 for this season I doubt if they thought for one minute that they would be so awful that this situation would arise.

 

Or....they didn't realise they were crafty enough to drag out the administration as long as they did...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
OldNick

OldNick

Posted
Posted
And, OldNick, THAT is why there is now a cut-off date for admins long before the end of the season, which is the deadline we missed with our (unexpected) admin, and why we got -10, due to Leeds and Boston bending the rules which the FL had changed by the time it happened to us.

 

I seem to recall Wrexham being poised to go into admin during their last game at one point too, but they won and stayed up, so carried on.

yes, I had taken it that people would have realised that it was since the rules changed not before the rule change. A minus 10 punishment was supposed to discourage clubs going into admin and shafting the business world just so that they could shed debt. This in turn would help the clubs who play by the rules as businesses would be happy to give lines of credit to . Any business supplying football clubs will be even more wary to give credit even if they seem well run clubs as they will look at how the FL do little to stop this going forward.

If as you say, the FL have not made a judgement yet and we should wait and see. I wonder if they can see that the business model going on is so frail that they do not want them to start on a minus 10 and the much lauded fans club go into admin very quickly and therefore are trying to help by not giving them a difficult start.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Gemmel

Gemmel

Posted
Posted

Andrew Hall-Jones ‏@realdrewdrew 11h

@colinfarmery 51% owned by fans? #spin #saintsfc #pompey

Expand Reply Retweet Favorite More

Colin Farmery ‏@colinfarmery 10h

@realdrewdrew 51 per cent. And the rest... ;o)

Expand

Andrew Hall-Jones ‏@realdrewdrew 10h

@colinfarmery so, for the record then Colin, the PST has a majority percentage of the board of owners?

Expand

Colin Farmery ‏@colinfarmery 9h

@realdrewdrew The final proportions will not be known for several months as the PST share offer remains open, but PST will own at least 51%

Expand

Andrew Hall-Jones ‏@realdrewdrew 9h

@colinfarmery so, at this moment in time, the trust don't actually "own" the club? But may do soon?

Expand

Colin Farmery ‏@colinfarmery 42m

@realdrewdrew Of course we 'own' the club. The PST has already enough cash for more than 51 per cent...

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Gorgiesaint

Gorgiesaint

Posted
Posted
@NabilHassan79: New #pompey chairman Iain McInnes releases statement saying he's "optimistic" points penalty will be imposed this season & not carried over.

 

Yeah, and I'm 'optimistic' that I'll win the National Lottery tonight... but it ain't gonna happen.

 

Andrew Hall-Jones ‏@realdrewdrew 11h

@colinfarmery 51% owned by fans? #spin #saintsfc #pompey

Expand Reply Retweet Favorite More

Colin Farmery ‏@colinfarmery 10h

@realdrewdrew 51 per cent. And the rest... ;o)

Expand

Andrew Hall-Jones ‏@realdrewdrew 10h

@colinfarmery so, for the record then Colin, the PST has a majority percentage of the board of owners?

Expand

Colin Farmery ‏@colinfarmery 9h

@realdrewdrew The final proportions will not be known for several months as the PST share offer remains open, but PST will own at least 51%

Expand So in other words, the 'share' offer remains open until they get to 51%

Andrew Hall-Jones ‏@realdrewdrew 9h

@colinfarmery so, at this moment in time, the trust don't actually "own" the club? But may do soon?

Expand

Colin Farmery ‏@colinfarmery 42m

@realdrewdrew Of course we 'own' the club. The PST has already enough cash for more than 51 per cent...

 

If you have enough to buy 51% of the club, does that leave any funds to run the club over the summer?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
hutch

hutch

Posted
Posted
Yeah, and I'm 'optimistic' that I'll win the National Lottery tonight... but it ain't gonna happen.

 

 

 

If you have enough to buy 51% of the club, does that leave any funds to run the club over the summer?

How many players will still be drawing wages on Monday 29th April?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
Gorgiesaint

Gorgiesaint

Posted
Posted
How many players will still be drawing wages on Monday 29th April?

 

Well, at the moment, not many. But you would suspect that they'll want to sign up all of these youngsters that have been tearing L1 a new one over the last few weeks on long term contracts otherwise... well it could be return of the triallist's squirrel tour of last summer during pre-season.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
CB Fry

CB Fry

Posted
Posted

OldNick and SaintRichmond will be overjoyed as it gives them another three years to foam at the mouth ranting on about the Football League's "beloved Portsmouth" and them getting away with it and other such bilge.

 

Start frothing, boys.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
melmacian_saint

melmacian_saint

Posted
Posted

You know I was angry at the -10, but then I read that 51% rubbish, and realized...

 

If the takeover value is estimated at 6.3 million (or so I read but will happily accept any corrections), then the PST will have spent 3.2 million of their funds on ownership ONLY. Given the figures for the shares campaign did not reach that value, then this means that the plucky "ordinary Portsmouth fans" have much less than 51% of the club's ownership.

 

The property developers have therefore the main income plug (bar the PPs which have already been called dibs on), and quite frankly I don't see 7-figure-worth individuals being too extravagant on their expenditures, let alone spending big amounts of their money in such a low-return business like a lower-league club.

 

They will literally become a L2 club, and every little cut in revenue will cost them a handful of league positions. WTFILN

Link to comment
Share on other sites
trousers

trousers

Posted
Posted (edited)

The Football League have effectively sent out the following message to all clubs: "If you fail to honour a CVA worth several tens of millions you will not be punished for it if you are already relegated".

 

Integrity? My arse.

 

Same old Pompey...

Edited by trousers
Link to comment
Share on other sites
 Share
Go to topic listing
×
×
  • Create New...