Tax bill ‘cleared’, but City takeover still in balance

CORK CITY last night claimed that the six-figure tax bill which has threatened the club’s future has been ‘cleared’.

But there is still no indication that a proposed takeover has moved any closer to being realised.

The club’s representatives are now reportedly attempting to bring forward the deferred High Court hearing aimed at winding-up the club in order to speed up the proposed takeover being facilitated by the Quintas Group on behalf of Peter Gray, Michael O’Connell and FORAS, the Cork City Supporters Trust.

With the consortium determined to ensure that a Premier Division license is in place before any deal is possible, the Independent Club Licensing Committee granted City a week’s grace on Monday to allow the Leesiders clear their €107,653 tax bill.

But, contrary to reports yesterday, there was still no deal last night. The impasse is believed to be a consequence of ongoing concerns about the full scale of the club’s indebtedness, now believed to be in the region of €800,000.

As the uncertainty continues, the fixture list for the 2010 League of Ireland season will be released at midday today and it is understood that City will be included in the Premier Division schedule while Bray Wanderers will be provisionally planning for a trip to Derry City, another club whose off-the-field issues led to their much-publicised demotion to the second tier.

However, both Cork and Bray will have an asterisk next to their name as the possibility remains that they could yet swap places.

Bray, who were due to meet late last night after their friendly with champions Bohemians to discuss the matter further, are not the only club to be riled by their limbo status.

Dundalk, who finished fifth in the league last season and will provisionally host Cork in their first game of the season, yesterday rowed in to announce their “frustration”, insisting they should be in line for a Europa League place by dint of fair play.

“It is entirely laudable that the FAI are considerate of creditors, but this is a step too far,” said a Dundalk spokesman.

“It is pretty obvious that Cork City do not hold the required tax clearance certificate at the close-off date, and that the rules and regulations are being applied unevenly.

“We have no wish for any club to be denied a rightful place in the league, and have empathy for Bray Wanderers and their supporters in the current uncertainty. In relation to the Europa League, we expect to be nominated as the League of Ireland’s third representative and we will be making our feelings known in no uncertain terms to the FAI.

“The additional ambiguity about our initial series of fixtures is an inconvenience for the club and its supporters, although Europa League nomination and the application of fair play are the fundamental issues.

“We expect the FAI and the Independent Club Licensing Committee to do the right thing when eventually the decisions are finally announced.”