The players and staff have been paid 40% of their wages after key senior players threatened to strike, refusing to play this weekends away fixture at Burton Albion. A statement from P&A today said “The joint administrators of Plymouth Argyle Football Company Limited (in administration) have confirmed that all staff (both players and other employees) have today (2 September 2011) been paid 40 per cent of their September wages on the basis of an agreement that they will continue to work up to and including 15 September 2011.” Pilgrims captain Carl Fletcher said “The worrying thing from our point of view is why did it have to take us to come out and say what we said yesterday to stump up some money, surely the players and staff should be one of their priorities and it shouldn’t have to take the threat of not playing for them to do that“. Fletcher went onto say “They’re taking advantage of our professionalism and our desire to keep the club going“. It emerged yesterday that Peter Ridsdale organised talks with James Brent and two others in London and has flown out to the US today to hold talks with US banker Bradley Rangell, who showed initial interest in buying Plymouth Argyle back in March but stepped back soon after.
This is unsubstantiated but I have read on some forums that Peter Ridsdale is getting paid between £20 – 25,000 per month in consultation fees. How on Earth can he be a consultant if he is acting chairman and potential new owner? If this rumour is true, it’s downright disgraceful; when a wealthy man like Ridsdale is getting paid £20,000+ per month when the rank and file get nothing. The only reason the club is still trading is because the staff and players have accepted wage deferral after wage deferral, backroom staff and some players haven’t been paid since December 2010! The backroom and playing staff have been absolutely fantastic, I can’t say a bad word about them, even the players that have left the club, who can blame them for wanting out of Home Park!
At this point I want the Football League to just come out and say “we, the Football League will not approve any deal involving Kevin Heaney and/or Peter Ridsdale”, that way P&A and Guilfoyle will have no option but to drop BIL/Heaney, which leaves two options, liquidation or deal with James Brent, which is unlikely as Brent refuses to pay for the extended administration period or any exclusivity fees. Liquidation will allow for Heaney to buy the land without an attached club!
With today’s ( Sept 8 ) BBC SouthWest Heaney interview, it seems that he is trying to pressurise the Football League and the administrator to accept his offer or he threatens to “walk away” from the deal … and take Peter Risdale with him. The net result may be that the administrator pulls the plug because he doesn’t feel other offers will be viable and the shoestring the club has been run on for almost the last year is about to snap. If that happens, liquidation will be likely with all the consequences that brings. We may be unable (or not allowed) to fulfil our fixtures and be expelled from the Footbal League rather than relegated. Very sobering thought.
Hopefully that won’t be the case; hopefully Brent or Buttivant can get a deal done to save the club!
I sincerely hope so, too. I have supported them since the 1960’s and already went through a club I supported, reported on and worked with having to go into liquidation (Bedford Town FC).