Southend United: Fans' group demands update on takeover

Roots Hall has been the home of Southend United since the stadium was built in 1955

A group of Southend United supporters say they will stage a protest unless news is provided about the sale of the National League club.

Agreement was reached with a consortium headed by Australian businessman Justin Rees in early October.

But a statement later that month said the takeover of the club had been delayed by "legal formalities".

It was then expected the deal would be concluded by 17 November but there has been no official update since then.

The Southend Fan Protest Group said on social media that they will hold a protest to demand answers unless an update is issued on Tuesday.

In a statement, the group said that although completing a takeover deal was "likely to be a difficult process, that does not prevent communication".

The statement continued: "We therefore demand that both parties issue a statement around current deal progress, club finances and anticipated completion.

"This can be joint or if necessary, individually state in public their own position. This should then allow fans to make up their minds and determine if the head of terms really are 'cast in stone' as he [owner Ron Martin] stated at last month's EGM."

The group added: "We remind the consortium that communication is expected on their part too. Treat Southend fans with the respect our unwavering commitment deserves."

Southend are currently 15th in the National League, following the deduction of 10 points in September because of their financial issues, and manager Kevin Maher's plans have been hampered by a transfer embargo which has been in place for over a year.

Club chairman Martin has owned the Shrimpers for 25 years but announced in March that he was putting the club up for sale.

He said in October that a target completion date of 1 November was "going to slip", adding: "It is a condition of the sale, requested by the consortium, that the share capital in the club be increased.

"My group of companies holds sufficient voting rights to ensure that the resolution is passed, but legal formalities need to be followed, including a statutory notice period of not less than 21 days, which means completion cannot be considered until 17 November."

Despite that, the 17 November deadline was not met either.