Truro City given extra week to find Conference cash

Truro City have been given more time to pay a £50,000 bond to ensure their membership of the Football Conference.

The club after failing to pay the bond by the original deadline of 17:00 BST on Thursday 11 October.

But they will now have until 17:00 BST on Thursday 18 October to pay the money which covers the costs of teams travelling to Truro if the club folds.

The Blue Square Bet South club went into administration in August.

"It's great news that we've got an extension until Thursday," James Moore, lawyer for administrators Walsh Taylor, told BBC South West Sport.

"Without that there was a possibility that the club could have been expelled today."

Saturday's scheduled game against Dover Athletic, which was called off earlier this week, has not been re-instated.

In a statement, the Football Conference said the information received from the administrator was "encouraging".

The statement continued: "This opportunity did not come to light until Wednesday evening, so it was not possible for the administrator to complete a purchase before close of business on Thursday.

"At an emergency Board meeting held on Friday afternoon the Directors expressed their hope for this latest development and granted the club, through the administrator, seven further days, until 5.00pm on Thursday 18 October, to meet its requirements and complete a sale.

"If the club fails to meet this deadline, the Board will be obliged to consider the club's further participation in the Competition."

But even if Truro City is saved, manager Lee Hodges says he may find it hard to persuade his players to stay for another week with no pay.

They are currently owed three month's money, with Hodges saying he and his squad want at least half of one month's wages in order to play next week.

"We don't know where we stand and it's another week where we're not paid," he told BBC South West Sport.

"We've all got mouths to feed and a load of [players] have got interest from other clubs.

"There's only so long I can keep hold of them. They asked me to keep them for this week and I've managed to do that and I'm sure they're going to ask me to keep them for another week."

The club is looking for a new ownership after the previous owner, Kevin Heaney, was declared bankrupt and left the club in August.

Truro had risen from playing local league football to two divisions off the Football league after five promotions in six years following funding from Heaney.

But the club were served with a in September last year over an unpaid tax bill and faced a debt claim of £700,000.

But Moore says a the Football Conference bond will depend upon getting security of tenure over the club's Treyew Road ground from current owners JoJo Investco Limited.

"It's quite a complex transaction because of the land issue," said Moore.

"If something can be resolved regarding the land then the bond can be put in place.

"We have managed to do a lot to over the last 24 hours to show them (the Football Conference) that we can trade the club, so I am grateful that we have been given an extension.

"We would have liked longer because of the nature of the transaction these things don't get dealt with in a short space of time.

"But in short, if the bond's put in, it'll most likely be that a sale will go through.

"We're all out to try and get something agreed over the land."