Administration Danger Is Real

Morecambe FC moving closer to the brink

A week is a long time in football. A few days is a long time in football, just ask any manager, player, fan or owner. The game moves faster on the pitch than ever before and just as quick off it at times.

Only a few days ago I was blogging and giving some air time to the plight of Morecambe FC which you can read here behind the paywall.

I did the same for Southend Utd and Scunthorpe Utd, and why not.

I might not have a reader base that tops the thousands or millions worldwide but why shouldn’t these clubs be in the public spotlight, especially when the chips are down and the football world of it is in danger of coming crashing down, this is why this posting is FREE for all to read.

The Shrimps have been dangling on a ‘for sale’ thread for months, around 24 of them to be more precise with an owner in Jason Whittingham wanting to get out but now seemingly going back on his word for a deal with Panjab Warriors.

Things took another turn on Tuesday morning with the Board of Directors who work as an unpaid volunteer unit ready to put the club into administration by the end of the day as Whittingham has not paid wages for June leaving the club in a perilous situation.

The wanting to be new owners are able and ready to pay the outstanding monies but are unable to do so until the sale completes. All parties were doing their utmost to complete the sale on Monday evening, all except the one man and his Bond Group that hold the key.

Quite what Whittingham will gain from delaying is pretty much beyond me, as I remarked in the blog only a few days ago, a man who ‘can’t wait to get out of the football club’ seems to be doing a good job of wanting to remain in football but not pay the bills.

At the time of writing this, the first deadline of 4pm has gone and now an extension from the Morecambe board until 6pm, that might well have changed by the time you read this later in the day or in the coming hours. Beginning the season in administration will draw I believe a 10 point penalty from the National League if it comes to that, a decision made by the board not lightly I imagine.

The club are no doubt behind in signing players, friendlies for the next four weeks will be in doubt and the biggest concern is those who work for, supply and support the Shrimps not knowing from one day to the next whether they will have a club to follow, a club to work for or a club in need of supplies and services.

When clubs go through this scenario, the suffering and anxiety is unbearable. I saw plenty of it through the eyes of Southend and Scunthorpe fans more recently, some of you will know and others not that I went through it growing up with Maidstone Utd.

The ill thought out moves of one particular person managed to not only condemn the Stones to liquidation, they took Dartford with them and the ground included.

I’ve already seen the cries for help in publicising what’s going on through X/Twitter, I’ve seen people concerned about how they’re gonna pay their next bills, this is real life stuff!

These are the people left behind if the club goes to the wall, the worst case scenario. It would mean no football for Morecambe FC this season if that was to happen, too close to a new season for plans to form and no space for a phoenix club in the bottom end of the pyramid.

Whoever you are, whoever you support, just give this a little retweet on X (pinned to the top of my profile), share it on Substack, take the link and let’s get Morecambe and their fans the attention they deserve from the wider footballing world, collapse the pyramid at the bottom or indeed in the middle, it becomes a steady decline that might engulf your club next……