Former Hinckley United chairman Keith Downes has urged the club to negotiate with him as they face a winding up order in court in Birmingham on Friday. Downes, as trustee of the family pension fund, claims that they are owed over £187,000 due to unpaid rent on the building behind the main stand which houses the boardroom, club office, changing rooms and bar
Former Hinckley United chairman Keith Downes has urged the club to negotiate with him as they face a winding up order in court in Birmingham on Friday. Downes, as trustee of the family pension fund, claims that they are owed over £187,000 due to unpaid rent on the building behind the main stand which houses the boardroom, club office, changing rooms and bar
The insolvency petition is the culmination of a long running and bitter financial wrangle over the Greene King Stadium. Downes’ building business constructed the main stand in 2005. When the club hit financial difficulty, with an outstanding tax bill of £200,000 in 2010, the Downes family say the board voted to sell the stand back to them to clear the debt. Cash came from the Downes’ pension fund and the club started to pay rent.
These kinds of issues are often resolved virtually at the courthouse door, but this one is getting very close to the wire.