Bolton Wanderers given 14 days to avoid Bury's fate of Football League expulsion

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Tom Doyle27 August 2019

Bolton Wanderers have 14 days to secure their long-term future after the EFL lifted the suspension on the notice of withdrawal of the club's membership.

However, with Bolton administrator Paul Appleton already revealing that there is no money left to fund the club without a takeover by the Football Ventures consortium, the EFL verdict looks terminal as the threat of liquidation looms large.

Having started the season on minus 12 points, Bolton have been on the brink for months but it had been hoped that the 145-year-old club, one of the English Football League's founding members, would be under new ownership by now.

That deal broke down on Saturday morning, however, forcing the league to impose the same final deadline it had set for fellow 'crisis club' Bury - with the latter expelled from the Football League on Wednesday evening.

The Press Association reported that Bolton's deal was ready to be signed on Friday afternoon and administrator Appleton and the EFL were still confident it would be completed the following morning.

But that was when a disagreement emerged between former owner Ken Anderson and the club's biggest creditor Fildraw, the family trust set up by Bolton's great benefactor during their Premier League years, Eddie Davies.

Monaco-based Anderson, who was controversially allowed to take over at Bolton despite previously serving an eight-year ban from being a company director, has blamed the trust and its lawyer for the deal's delay, with the other parties involved pointing the finger at him.

It is understood Anderson, who has charges against the club's assets for debts of £2.5million, wants guarantees from Appleton that he will not be pursued by the administrator for any more money once Wanderers change hands. The trust, which has a charge for £10million of debt, is unwilling to grant that request.

If this was almost any other type of business, the deal would probably be completed and Anderson and Fildraw would be left to resolve this matter between themselves, so the club could continue as a going concern.

But the EFL simply cannot let Bolton, or Bury, stumble on, as there are implications for the competitive integrity of the league.

Bolton and Bury face being thrown out of the English Football League.
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Therefore, the league reactivated the notice of withdrawal it suspended, giving the Trotters 14 days to come up with an alternative plan to meet their debts and fund the season.

That, however, would not really be a fortnight's respite, as Appleton has already said he will have to wind the club up, as Football Ventures have been funding his work and he will have a legal responsibility to prevent any further losses.

An EFL statement released late on Tuesday evening read: "Despite further exchanges with the Administrators over the course of the Bank Holiday weekend, and right up until today’s deadline of 5pm, a resolution to ongoing impasse in negotiations regarding a completion of sale at Bolton Wanderers has not yet been found.

"The EFL Board has therefore taken the decision to lift the suspension on the notice of withdrawal, which was issued as per the EFL’s insolvency policy when the Club entered administration in May 2019.

"As per the League’s Articles of Association, this will now give the Club 14 days (11.59pm on 12 September, 2019) to meet all outstanding requirements of the League’s insolvency policy or its membership in the EFL will be withdrawn.

"In respect of the situation at Bolton Wanderers, the administrators now have this period of time to successfully conclude a change of control with a preferred purchaser, or provide sufficient evidence that they are in a position to fund the Club for the remainder of the 2019/20 campaign."

EFL Executive Chair, Debbie Jevans CBE, said: “Despite repeated assurances, we are extremely disappointed that we are still not in a position to reach a successful resolution with the sale of Bolton Wanderers and have therefore taken the decision to lift the suspension on the notice of withdrawal. I again urge all parties to finalise the proposed takeover.

“The reality of this action is that there are now 14 days to secure the Club’s long-term future, and I sincerely hope we can find a way through these challenging circumstances for the benefit of all those who have an association with the Club.”

Additional reporting by the Press Association.

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