Oldham’s Appeal

Thursday, 26 June 2003, 0:00
2 mins read

An Appeal From Oldham Athletic

Oldham Athletic, 108 years old is in imminent danger of going out of business. NOW, not next week, or the week after but within the next couple of days.

Administration is not an option for Latics as in the case of a lot of clubs. Latics have already disposed of their ground a number of years ago to service previous debts and now have no assets whatsoever to convince a judge to grant an administration order.

It’s so grave that if the players wages are not paid by Friday 27 June, they can give notice and walk away. The club shop has had to close it’s doors, the bank account is frozen and there remain to be paid Inland Revenue monthly bills from 19th June which could result in the Revenue serving a winding up order at any minute.

At that time, Oldham Athletic Football Club will cease to exist. There looks like being no last minute reprieve such as has happened at other clubs. Talks with potential new investors broke down when the size of the debts became clear.

A Supporters Trust has been set up and we are hoping that money raised can be used to buy us some time. We need to raise around ร‚ยฃ250,000 within the next couple of days to pay the most pressing of the debts (Inland Revenue etc.) and to pay the players wages to avoid them walking away. After that, we’ll have a little breathing space to explore new avenues to survival.

As fans of other clubs, we need your help.

When Bury was in this situation a year or two ago, Latics fans rallied round and turned up in numbers at Gigg Lane to do what we could. The Bury fans in turn have turned up on our message board in numbers offering moral support, as have loads of fans from other clubs and we thank them all wholeheartedly. When you’re in this situation you’ve no idea the boost a simple message of support from a rival fan gives you.

But we need more. A bank account has been set up via the Supporters Trust website and we are asking all genuine fans if they could contribute a few quid via a credit card to help us through this crisis. Please click the Supporters Trust logo at the bottom of this story to contribute.

We’d do the same for you and you could be helping to keep a piece of footballing history alive and at the same time keeping the league intact. Once one club folds, how many more will follow?

There are 92 of our clubs, and no genuine fan wants to see any of them go the wall. We are merely the latest in a long line of crisis hit clubs and we won’t be the last.

If we all stick together and support each other in our times of need, we can all survive and with a little better husbandry of the meagre resources available to the vast majority of clubs in the league, we can at least survive, if not prosper.

Please give whatever you can.

We’ll do the same for you should the need ever arise. Please donate at the link below and thanks a million.

Together in Sport.

Jack Scott

kjskot@hotmail.com

Publisher

JKLatics.com

Oldham Athletic Rivals

If the donation facility is not working when you click on the Trust Site (it should be shortly), you may donate in cash (not cheque – too long to clear funds) at any HSBC branch with the following account details:-

HSBC Holborn Circus Sort Code 40-03-28 Account Name : Secure Athletic’s Future Existence No. 51715909

What are your thoughts? Share them on the Message Board

Can’t Get To Your PC?? You can Phone or Fax JackArmy.net on 0709 230 7105

Call costs are 32 p per minute peak time, 22p per minute off peak and 11p per minute at weekends. Call times will vary depending on the length of your message. JackArmy.net reserves the right not to post messages it deems unfit for publication. Please try and refrain from the use of foul language when making a call. Calls from mobile phones and abroad may vary.

Images courtesy of Getty Images, Athena Picture Agency and Swansea City Football Club.

League Table

Next Up

Forum Latest

Next Up

League Table

Last 6 Results

Latest from Blog

The lack of ambition from upstairs plays its way through on the pitch

It was the summer of 2016 when the ownership changed at Swansea City.ย  ย After fifteen years of unparalleled success the local ownership group that had steered the club from the edge of bankruptcy to a first major trophy and five years in the Premier League handed over the keys to…

Swans TV: Swansea City v Millwall | Highlights

. . .watch some of the key moments from the Swans' Championship clash against Millwall at the Swansea.com Stadium. For more information, as well as all the latest Swansea City AFC news, log onto the club's official website at http://www.swanseacity.com Subscribe on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/SWANSPLAYER Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SwanseaCityFC Follow…

Swans TV: Swansea City v Millwall | The Full Match

. . .watch all of the action from the Swans' Championship clash against Millwall at the Swansea.com Stadium. For more information, as well as all the latest Swansea City AFC news, log onto the club's official website at http://www.swanseacity.com Subscribe on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/SWANSPLAYER Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SwanseaCityFC Follow us…

Swans TV: Swansea City v Millwall | Extended Highlights

. . . watch some of the key moments from the Swans' Championship clash against Millwall at the Swansea.com Stadium. For more information, as well as all the latest Swansea City AFC news, log onto the club's official website at http://www.swanseacity.com Subscribe on YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/SWANSPLAYER Like us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/SwanseaCityFC…