Edinburgh City confident of fulfilling season after reaching HMRC agreement

Former Dundee, Hibernian and Ross County defender Liam Fontaine is Edinburgh City captain

Edinburgh City are confident they can fulfil their fixtures this season after reaching an agreement with HM Revenue and Customs over unpaid tax.

A winding-up order was issued in December and some players left the club after not being paid.

Edinburgh are three points adrift at the bottom of Scottish League One after 20 of their 36 scheduled fixtures.

"Our goal is now to finish eighth and stay in the league. That is our priority," said chairman John Dickson.

"We have steadied the ship now to the point we are looking forward to getting this season under our belts.

"We have sat down and reached an agreement with them and HMRC has removed that petition."

'No different to a Premiership or lower-league club'

Dickson says it has been a constant battle to attract commercial support since taking over last summer.

"I've spent the last eight months out there looking to get sponsors and corporate involvement in the club," he explained.

"Every club is exactly the same. We are no different from a club in the Premiership or a club in the lower leagues. We all have costs but it's just basically making sure we can steady the boat to where it's sustainable. We can't be spending more than we are bringing in.

"We have more [fans] than last season. We have 40 season-ticket holders. We don't hide that. We split the stand but we do fill our home side. Our numbers are up from last season but it would be great to get more season-ticket holders to show commitment but they are coming through the turnstile."

Dickson was reluctant to say how much it is costing to run the club - which is in the third tier of Scottish football - for a season but confirmed it was in excess of £500,000.

"Easily," he added. "Those costs will remain in terms of us hiring Meadowbank Stadium, our training facilities and so on. Our operation costs remain. Obviously, we have got to make sure the game's safe so we have stewards, paramedics and safety officers. They all come at a cost.

"It's being realistic with the players' wages as well, for the size of club we are and the league we play in."

While Dickson believes the immediate threat of administration has been lifted, he could not rule out it happening again if further investment in the club is not found.

"In all fairness there is always that possibility again if you don't know where your next penny is coming from," he explained.

"We have not stopped. Seven days a week just pushing and pushing so I was always confident we would find what we need to make sure the club survives."