saveleedsunited.co.uk

So we survive by the skin of our teeth and live to fight another day. I strongly suspect we’ve been the ball in a game of “Extreme Football Politics Hardball”. Ken Bates has gambled on the “We’re too big to let us die because there will be riots” card. KPMG will have countered with their “We’ve stuck to company law - it’s not our problem anymore” card, which nobody could beat. The football league having played their “Do it our way or we won’t let you play” card lost the bluff and didn’t want to look like the bad guys. Therefore, before Ken Bates could stick the ball in the proverbial “back of the net” and trump them all, they’ve committed a professional foul and settled for a penalty.

Slight mix of metaphors there, but I’m one very happy bunny that we’re still here, alive and we’ll definitely be kicking again soon. Still, we shouldn’t let Bates off the hook for this - I’m certain that the league and HMRC won’t!

That’s all I know at the moment. This is really really really bad news, and right now I’m devastated.  According to the league Chairman, Brian Mawhinney a CVA was required for Leeds United to be able to start the season - this could mean liquidation. The protest at Elland Road is more important now as this could possibly mean the end of our club. Right now we deperately need a knight in shining armour and one thing’s for sure - that’s not Ken Bates. I’m trying to rationally see what might happen next.

So - we’ve got no league share and we don’t hold the players’ registrations - as far as the league is concerned those are held by the old company that went into administration and now no longer exists. Without these Ken Bates doesn’t own very much, given that without pay the players can at some point in the very near future walk away from their contracts.  Amazing then that as I write this the only news on the official site is that we’ve been handed a bye in the Johnstone Paint Trophy. This sums up the current owners of our club as far as I’m concerned.

As far as I can see the only options available are:

1) The league views this as a set of exceptional circumstances and allows us to carry on while they sort things out, hopefully getting rid of Bates in the process who must now be fearing to step foot in Leeds.

2) Ken Bates, HMRC, and the League get their heads together to allow Bates to offload the club to someone who, as the HMRC Director put it IS transparent in terms of their creditors’ identity and deals.

3) The club dies.

 As we’re not dead yet, don’t give up hope! We now simply HAVE to united and pull together as fans to do whatever we can. Please let me know of ANY protests, campaigns or other courses of action and I’ll publicise them as far as possible.  See Main Site - Contact Page.

Reproduced from posting on WACCOE site:

“Isn’t about time we had a protest against those animals at the top of Leeds United Football Club? For too long now, we’ve sat back and let this club go from bad, to worse, and when you think it can’t get any worse? Bang, there you go, we’ve been proved wrong. I think it is fair to say that our situation is life threatening now, we’re on life support and what happens now? We could be dead, gone, Elland Rd a super market, and in a few years time, you maybe walking past Lowfields memory, with a lump in your throat, looking at Billy, seeing your club gone; Looking back and thinking, why didn’t I do anything at all!?

How many other fans of other clubs in this country, or around the world would put up with this **** for much longer? None, so why are we!? Now for all those people that say, get behind the team - This is a pointless pre-season game, vs a very pointless club, this could very well be the last time that us fans get the chance to see a LUFC in action. From Ridsdale to Ken Bates this club has taken a huge bashing around, and it can’t cope for much longer, and we’re the relatives being kept in the dark.

We have a person as our chairman who is the scum of football, he’s ****** Chelsea up to the extent to where their debts were as bad as ours, even at our peak. “He was involved with various other enterprises during the 1960s and 1970s, including a project on the British Virgin Islands and setting up the Irish Trust Bank, which was completed in 1976, leaving thousands of investors out of pocket”

This is where we need unity from all the Supporters clubs, all the individual fan bases, to become one UNITED movement. This could be our only chance to have our say.
How many more times do we have to see it!? He ****s up everywhere he goes! We ALL know that, so why are we sitting back, and letting this happen to one of the proudest clubs in English football, if Billy and Don. Kevin and Chris were here now, what do you think they’d say?! Why are we sitting back and letting everyone **** over us?

PROTEST FACTS AND AIMS -

1 - Fans to gather at West Stand car park at 1pm, bring cameras and video phones etc
2 - Banners like the infamous “SAVE OUR CLUB” by Fev, “LUFC 1919 - 2007, don’t let it happen” and the likes.
3 - Lets show the country, and the media that we are not part of the 99% that Bates, says that the fans are behind him.
4 - How many times has Bates taken pop shots at Leeds fans in the past? Angered chanting directed to those at the top of Elland Rd, from Ridsdale all the way down to Bates.
5 - To gather as many fans as we can, numbers are numbers, the more the better, lets make this something to remember.

Add to the list..

..If we don’t have a club to support come August the 11th (Which is a very high possibility) will you regret not doing something while you had the time to? I will be the first to say, If you’re down there, come along, what have you to lose? Valuable drinking time? Is drinking more important than LUFC in this current time and situation? No, be there.”

I think a protest is a good idea when there’s a very good chance at the moment that we can’t start the season - however I’m not sure why it’s targetted at Bates alone - he’s the catalyst without a doubt but there are other players in this ie the football league, HMRC and KPMG who also have played a large part in this mess.

I just heard that the league have refused the transfer of the share unless a CVA is in place. Apparently they’re now waiting to see if the administrators KPMG can reconstitute the original CVA as the league will not transfer to the new club, Leeds United 2007. What an absolute farcical fiasco. We’re nine days away from the start of the season and what could effectively be the end of our club and they’re now trying to get back to where we were weeks ago.  KPMG are due to report back on Friday, so that’s even more waiting - hopefully they mean tomorrow and not Friday 10th August.

I don’t know if this is true, but it was posted today on the BBC website forum, 606. Fingers crossed they’re working towards a resolution!

“”- Leeds had been ‘given assurances’ before their meeting they would receive their share back at the meeting on tuesday and had arranged for contracts to be drawn up for the players to sign on the tuesday evening (night of Darlo game) tranferring registration to new LU2007 company. Unfortunately this was not the case and Leeds were furious. Wise had been told he would be able to sign new players from tuesday night and was ‘deeply upset’ this was not the case. It is understood a couple of the trialists and players being lined up are getting itchy feet and may go elsewhere in search of a contract.

- FL had backtracked on a verbal agreement that if certain paperwork was produced they would hand over the share ‘without delay’. The paperwork went to them two weeks ago, they then asked for more on monday of last week, KPMG supplied it on weds last week. FL seem to be ‘chainging the goalposts’.

- KPMG initially refused to attend the meeting on tuesday due to and issue with legal fees (Leeds didnt want to pay them to attend??) but they were at the meeting yesterday and will be there today.

- PFA have been present at the meeting and will meet with Leeds players today. Several players have asked the PFA when/how/under what circumstances they can walk away from their contracts. This has angered Bates and there may be players that because of this will not play for the club again.

- The court action from HMRC is still very much alive despite press speculation. Even though the CVA has been scrapped the court case in Early Sept is still on the court schedule and it is understood HMRC will still press ahead with it. For this reason THEY themselves have also been involved in the talks with LU and FL this week. FL not happy to proceed with threat from HMRC looming.

- FL ’should’ reluctantly give our share back this morning but were frantically drawing up a legal contract last night with which Leeds must agree to adhere to before this is returned. This will include a wage cap, a payback scheme of all debts to players, MANAGERS (inc. Blackwell- this has been a moot point in discussion which FL are very unhappy about), All Football league clubs and also an agreed payback compromise to the HMRC. The payback deal to the HMRC is understood to be the key stumbling block. If this is agreed in the meeting the HMRC have agreed to drop their case at which point the share will be given back. If Leeds refuse to accept this point or compromise it to a satisfactory degree they may still be given their share back but with a suspended points deduction awarded which would either be actioned or overturned pending the results of the court case with HMRC.

- If Leeds do get share today there will be 2/3 new players purchased (with real money!) 3/4 players signed on which will include those on trial and also 4/5 players from last season given new contracts. There will be a new shirt sponsorship announced in time for first home game of the season.”"

Having seen numerous reports today about imminent announcements and press conferences, there’s still no news as yet. This is incredibly frustrating as well as extremely worrying. The league met last week having had the last of the documentation they requested. They announced a meeting with Leeds United officials early this week - as yet it’s Thursday and other than the official Leeds site reporting “ongoing discussions” there’s still NO NEWS!

As Leeds fans who provide the life-blood of the club from our hard-earned wages, we are effectively the lowest of the low in this situation. Our chairman is pretty much universally despised and with all the controversy surrounding the mystery creditor who’s happy to waive millions of pounds worth of debt for Ken Bates alone, he makes Arthur Daley look distinctly honourable. Has Ken Bates done anything illegal though? As far as anyone can find out, no he hasn’t but he appears to have cleverly exploited a number of loopholes which now leaves the league in an extremely difficult position - I’d put money on some new rules being introduced before long about off-shore creditors. The league themselves haven’t helped any football club by having rules that give preferential creditor status to footballing creditors. The taxman is going to be challenging that every time from now on, which would potentially make it difficult for any club to exit a CVA if there are legal challenges. Currently league rules state that a club in administration has to have a CVA in place to carry on operating.

As Leeds no longer have a CVA in place, and wouldn’t have had anyway prior to the football season commencing due to the taxman’s legal challenge, the football league have a problem I expect. Does Ken Bates satisfy their “fit and proper person” criteria? Do they deny the share transfer and effectively put the club out of business? It wouldn’t make them look very good in general given that it’s probably due to a set of circumstances they never legislated for or anticipated. Us Leeds fans would also have plenty to say and do about it. Do they just give the share back? Well so far they haven’t which is a big concern for all of us.

So where are we? Currently nowhere and with a meagre squad, Dennis Wise is doing the best he can but might as well be wearing a straight-jacket.  We do seem though to be selling players at an alarming rate given that we have so few of them. Healy, Blake and now Cresswell have all gone and as yet we can’t touch their transfer fees. Isn’t it just great being a Leeds fan?

Aargh! What a frustrating game! Plenty of chances from Leeds United, particularly in the first half, yet we still saw