LEAGUE OF IRELAND NEWS:DROGHEDA UNITED took a significant step forward in their campaign to avoid bankruptcy and an exit from senior football yesterday when the club's players agreed to the package they had been offered in lieu of unpaid wages and bonuses.
The club offered an initial lump sum of €91,000, plus a further, undisclosed amount three months after it emerges from examinership.
The players, with the prospect of losing all of the €350,000 they are owed looming large, voted to strike a deal, and Professional Footballers' Association of Ireland general secretary Stephen McGuinness confirmed the news yesterday.
"The players would like to thank the supporters for all their hard work in raising funds that will, hopefully, see the club come out of examinership," he said. "It is also important to acknowledge the efforts of the players who have agreed to accept settlement amounts which are considerably less than those to which they would have been entitled in the ordinary course of events. The players, however, recognise that the survival of the club is the paramount consideration and will continue to do everything they can to assist the club."
United chairman Vincent Hoey said the agreement represented a significant step forward in the campaign to save the club, but he warned there is still a great deal of work to do if the rescue is to be completed ahead of the return to the High Court on January 22nd.
"The fact is that we have, in essence, crossed Becher's Brook, but we still have a number of tricky fences to negotiate," he said. "The support we have received from fans and the general public has been tremendous, but I am appealing to all to continue the fund-raising drive that will secure the future of Drogheda United."
St Patrick's Athletic have received a number of applications for the manager's job and hope to start speaking to candidates next week. Alan Mathews is considered to be one of the favourites to replace Johnny McDonnell, but a return by Brian Kerr to the club appears to be unlikely.
Cobh Ramblers, meanwhile, have received applications from former Shelbourne defender Dave Rogers, former manager Dave Hill, former Ramblers player Stephen Neiland and the club's A team manager, Alan O'Sullivan, to succeed Stephen Henderson at St Colman's Park.
Derry City striker Kevin McHugh has agreed terms with Linfield and is set to complete his move today. The former Finn Harps man had found opportunities at the Brandywell limited, with Sammy Morrow and Mark Farren ahead of him in the pecking order.
