East Fife were on the verge of new ownership after a bid by four existing board members to take control was agreed in principle.
Directors Jim Stevenson, Dave Marshall, John Barclay and John Donaldson’s offer for the majority shareholding – which is thought to be in the region of £380,000 – has been approved by the current owners and heads of terms have been agreed, meaning that the start of another new chapter at the Methil club is closer than ever.
The directors’ bid has gone ahead in spite of pleas from the East Fife Supporters Society (EFSS) to shelve their plans and work with them to bring about a fan ownership model, with the fans’ group recently expressing concerns about the board’s blueprint to take the club forward.
Nevertheless, the directors have ploughed on regardless with talks with representatives of majority shareholders Lorraine Johnston and Samantha Twigg behind the scenes and these reached a breakthrough yesterday after Ms Johnston said the deal is “acceptable subject to contract”.
The matter is now in the hands of solicitors, but chairman Mr Stevenson who stepped into the role following the departure of Lee Murray earlier this year is convinced that the directors’ plan is the best way forward for the Fifers.
“We’ve come to an agreement with the majority shareholders and they’ve accepted our proposal,” he told Courier Sport.
“We’re going to go forward with trying to purchase the club and there will be an open meeting at Bayview for all fans at 7pm on Monday to hear about what’s happening.
“The proposal is with the owners’ lawyers now and we just want to get on with the job and bring some stability to the club.”
As per the directors’ bid, a separate holding company would be set up which would see the directors retain control of 52% of the club’s shares for at least five years.
When that period is up, it has been suggested that the directors would offer their shareholding to the EFSS at the original purchase price, with the EFSS and others being invited to purchase the remaining shares if they desired.
On that point yesterday, Mr Stevenson added: “We’ve already stated we’d like to establish a different kind of set-up further down the line, but we need to get this stability now.
“We’re happy to talk to the EFSS, and under the four directors’ proposal we will get some stability so it will be up to us here in Methil to negotiate with the EFSS in future.”
The EFSS said they would have preferred a joint bid with the directors after casting doubt on the near-£800,000 valuation given to Mr Stevenson and his colleagues at the beginning of the process.
The EFSS told Courier Sport recently that their own due diligence process suggested the £800,000 figure was too high considering the value of the land at New Bayview, reportedly worth around £150,000, and the current financial state of the club.
They also cast doubt over how the club is currently being managed financially, suggesting that a “pattern of considerable losses” were only averted “literally by the luck of a good cup draw” citing ties against Aberdeen and Rangers in recent seasons and the income from big league attendances at home to Rangers last term.
Last night, a spokesperson for the EFSS said they had noted the agreement in principle with interest and are understandably keen to find out the finer details.
“While we clearly do not know the terms of purchase, we had been advised that the valuation of £380,000 that has been mentioned seemed much greater than the club was worth,” the EFSS concluded.
“For that reason we were awaiting the result of our due diligence process before putting in a bid.
“We had asked the directors for a meeting a week ago to discuss matters further but had received no response.
“We will continue to be willing to support and be involved with the club and wish the directors well in their purchase.”