New crisis for the Quakers (From The Advertiser Series)

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New crisis for the Quakers

8:00am Wednesday 16th February 2011 in News Photograph of the Author Exclusive By Scott Wilson

Raj Singh

Darlington Football Club’s future is again under threat with chairman Raj Singh threatening to walk away amid a new financial crisis.

His threat comes as it is revealed that the holding company, which owns the stadium and surrounding land, has been placed in receivership.

Mr Singh, who has pumped more than £2.5m into the club since taking over from former chairman George Houghton in the summer of 2009, risks losing control of both the stadium and the land surrounding it.

As a result, the Teesside businessman is ready to cut his losses and sever his ties with Darlington, a move that would place the Blue Square Bet Premier club’s future in grave doubt.

While Mr Singh is the sole owner of the football club, the stadium and surrounding land is the property of a holding company that was jointly owned by Mr Singh and Mr Houghton.

Prior to Mr Singh’s arrival, that holding company incurred a £1.7m debt to Philip Scott and Graham Sizer, former senior executives with the Darlington-based care home company Southern Cross Healthcare.

Mr Singh understood that the debt would be settled by Mr Houghton before a prearranged date towards the end of last year, but that did not happen.

Mr Singh has now assumed 75 per cent ownership of the holding company, but the £1.7m debt, which has increased to more than £2m because of accrued interest, remains outstanding and Mr Scott and Mr Sizer have called in receivers to recover the debt. Mr Singh subsequently made what he described as a generous offer to Mr Scott and Mr Sizer, in line with an independent valuation of the holding company’s assets, but it was turned down.

The receivers are now expected to market the land and stadium and, if a buyer cannot be found, Mr Scott and Mr Sizer would assume ownership as the first-ranking creditors.

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The pair have no interest in running the football club, which operates as a separate company under the name Darlington Football Club 2009, but are willing to honour an existing lease that enables the club to use the stadium for the next 13 years at £10,000 a year.

However, if Mr Singh loses control of the stadium and surrounding land, he does not feel the football club justifies a continued investment, understood to be about £20,000-a-week.

“I have always maintained that, without the stadium and the land that goes with it, there isn’t really a business there at all,” said Mr Singh.

“We can’t move forward without ownership of the ground. This is a debt that was incurred prior to my time here, and I have made what I believe to be a perfectly generous offer. However, it has been turned down. Unless this can be resolved fairly quickly, I don’t think I have any option other than walking away.”

Mr Scott, who is chief executive of Priory Group, said he did not want to see the football club’s future in jeopardy, but regards either the sale of the stadium or its transfer into his hands as the only way of recovering his debt.

“Some three-and-a-half years ago, when the club was in real difficulty, Graham and I, at the request of the then chairman, George Houghton, provided loan funds of £1.7m,”

said Mr Scott. “Naturally, those loans were interest bearing, however, on an accrued basis, and to date, we have never received any interest payments or dividends.

“When the club experienced further difficulty and Raj decided to acquire the football club, Graham and I agreed to a new lease that allows Raj and the club to operate at a very nominal rent. Yes, he did make us an offer, which was unacceptable as it was less than 25 per cent of the total debt. That said, he still has the right to continue operations under terms of the lease that has the nominal rent.”

Mr Houghton said: “It was always, and still is, Raj’s duty to pay those guys off. The loan always related to the property and the land.

“I have not benefited by £1 from the club, and have lost several millions since I became involved. I own a minority share of 25 per cent of the property and the land.

“Raj has to pay off the two, but now appears to be blaming me in what appears to be a premeditated strategy.”

Comments(26)

Ian James says...
10:27am Wed 16 Feb 11

They spent 20 million pounds on that stadium 10 years ago, but the only trouble was it was facing the f-----g pitch!!! They should have built it the other way round so people could watch the traffic go by on the by-pass coz it would have been more interesting, counting the different coloured cars n that. lol.