PMG - A Joint Statement From CCSC and CCST

JOINT STATEMENT FROM THE CARDIFF CITY SUPPORTERS’ CLUB AND SUPPORTERS’ TRUST

Despite being granted a 56-day stay of execution in the High Court last week, it appears that Cardiff City Football Club’s future is once again on a knife edge.

We have been reliably informed that administration is virtually inevitable before the end of March if significant new investment in the club has not materialised by then. We understand the Bluebirds’ cash reserves are practically exhausted, there is little money available to pay this month’s wage bill and debts are now estimated at almost £40 million.

The situation is clearly perilous, although we are led to believe there may be light at the end of the tunnel thanks to a written offer of investment from a Malaysian consortium. The group’s front-man, Dato Chan Tien Ghee, is said to be arriving in the UK on Thursday for a series of meetings with Bluebirds’ officials, during which the club’s fate will effectively be sealed.

The men who appear to hold the key to the football club’s future are Cardiff-based property developers Paul Guy and Mike Hall. Their company, PMG, is the club’s biggest shareholder and also its largest secured creditor. Consequently, they are certain to be central to any takeover negotiations.

During recent years, PMG has benefited from a series of lucrative land deals connected to the Cardiff City Stadium project. Not only has the company become the sole owner of the successful Capital Retail Park, but it was also chosen to develop and build the Glamorgan Records Office, which stands adjacent to the new stadium.

In addition, PMG recently purchased another large plot of land on the stadium site, upon which a hotel will eventually be developed.

It is clear that PMG has been doing very nicely from its relationship with Cardiff City, but the current state of the football club’s finances suggests the benefits of this association have not been entirely mutual.

It should be acknowledged that Paul Guy and Mike Hall were largely instrumental in getting the new stadium project off the ground. They advised on all stadium development issues, while PMG advanced the club £9 million of the funding required to build it. The loan was secured against future income from the Premier Club seating area and attracts interest estimated at £500,000 pa.

In December 2006, while he and his colleagues were in the process of taking control of Cardiff City, Mike Hall claimed the new investors were local people who were interested in the football club’s long-term future. He also described former-owner Sam Hammam as being motivated by “total greed and self-interest.”

We sincerely hope that Messrs Guy and Hall will not put themselves in a position whereby they will be open to similar accusations from Bluebirds’ supporters during the coming weeks. We therefore call upon them to set aside their personal interests and do what is right for Cardiff City Football Club in the critical days ahead.

This seems a very provocative statement when you consider what could happen in the next few days.

So the fate of the club is in the hands of PMG and we decide now is the right time to suggest they may be too greedy to do what's right by the club. Unless Administration is nearly a certainty I think this statement is ill timed.

We have been led to believe that administration would only occur if PR does not accept an offer to stand down, can we expect a statement requesting PR to do the right thing by the club and not be too greedy? Thought not.

If you were the Malaysians,would you take on the £40mill debt or take the club out of administration?

It`s a tricky one

i would say its a massive gamble but if we were to go up they would make back there 40million

Where has £40 Million come from? I thought £10 million langston.... what's the other £30 Million?

If you were the Malaysians,would you take on the £40mill debt or take the club out of administration?

It`s a tricky one

Where has the 40million figure come from now?

Langstone was at 10 and PMG down to around 8.2 is there another 22 millions worth of creditors who worked on the stadium?

Where has £40 Million come from? I thought £10 million langston.... what's the other £30 Million?

theres loans and all the contractors to be paid,pmg 9 mill, bus company's the vale, the list is endless

A very good statement and well written


but IMO i think its 3-4 months late if this was released in jan we might not be so deep in the shit, PR woud be gone and TG would have invested

If this statement was released earlier there would have been a lot more supportrs willing to voice their concerns


baz

We all knew this was coming, yet the Riddler kept saying the club was sound long term.

well yesterday i was full of hope and smiling due to the takeover looking very good and that tw*t risdale gone and now you make this thread on today of all days!!!!!!!!!!!!this admin threat is pissing me off.I pray that a deal is done today and that tw*t fucks off

What a pathetic I'll timed statement, firstly the statement is released the day the malaysians arrive in city for meetings straight after Borleys trip last week.

Secondly there is no real point to the statement or call of any action, just a dig at Pmg of a well known situation.

I see it's a joint statement, well the supporters group should stick to booking busses and for the trust, well they don't actually do anything ?

This statement is pathetic and clearly highlights the weakness of the trust and highlights it's just a publicity tool for Sugarman ( the hoolie at all the soul crew book signings)

steve

although i wouldent put it as strong as that the constant digs at pmg astound me
without pmg the club would have folded in sams reign
who do they think paid the initial 1.2 million to the taxman.
as far as im aware paul has known about the malaysian offer for weeks and is happy with it.
the trouble is a few intercepted e.mails does not tell the full story.
both organisations should have spoke to steve borley first in my opinion as im sure he would not welcome any critisicm of paul guy at this crucial stage of negotiations

What a pathetic I'll timed statement, firstly the statement is released the day the malaysians arrive in city for meetings straight after Borleys trip last week.

Secondly there is no real point to the statement or call of any action, just a dig at Pmg of a well known situation.

I see it's a joint statement, well the supporters group should stick to booking busses and for the trust, well they don't actually do anything ?

This statement is pathetic and clearly highlights the weakness of the trust and highlights it's just a publicity tool for Sugarman ( the hoolie at all the soul crew book signings)

I suppose you could argue that with RIdsdale apparently gone and no fall guy (no pun intended) to hide behind, the Trust are switching attention onto the real power brokers?

What a pathetic I'll timed statement, firstly the statement is released the day the malaysians arrive in city for meetings straight after Borleys trip last week.

Secondly there is no real point to the statement or call of any action, just a dig at Pmg of a well known situation.

I see it's a joint statement, well the supporters group should stick to booking busses and for the trust, well they don't actually do anything ?

This statement is pathetic and clearly highlights the weakness of the trust and highlights it's just a publicity tool for Sugarman ( the hoolie at all the soul crew book signings)

Totally agree and STILL no statement against PR. Odd how it will be PMG's fault if we go into admin and not PR's for not accepting a deal today.

Someone is protecting the Riddler

Confused now, thought PMG were on board with this plan and only needed Mr r to go, sounds abit simplistic I know but where has this announcement suddenly come from and why no mention of Mr ridsdales faults errors etc .

Written by an adult in short trousers. We all know where we are and don't need you to state the blindingly obvious in such pious terms. Do you really think that what you have written in any way advances the cause? All you have done is highlight how far removed and how hopelessly ineffective the Trust is.

These people are business men. There is always a sub text and agenda. We will end up where we end up and witless rhetoric from CCSC have no no influence on the process. Time to grow up and live in the real world.

-------------------------------------------------------------------
If I may be allowed a view before I am torn apart by some of the 'Heavies' who use this board to stamp on any opinions differing from their own, I would like to gently point out that , only the other day the trust was accused of being too gentlemanly in its statements as opposed to the steady roar of violent protest heard here. So now the Trust and associates are being too heavy handed in stating the desperate position clearly and pointing a finger at the usual suspects.

When a board starts being used to slag off individuals with whom you disagree then it merely becomes a line of nodding heads led by people who have their own personal agenda. This can be a great board if and when it ceases to be a home for spite and nonsense. Those who wish to attack this message --- please form a very long line.

The Malaysians are not idiots. The trust message will not tell them anything they don't know.


CAL

Caliburn, I'll be joining the queue to agree with you. What you've just written sums up my thoughts on both the Trust and this messageboard.

Written by an adult in short trousers. We all know where we are and don't need you to state the blindingly obvious in such pious terms. Do you really think that what you have written in any way advances the cause? All you have done is highlight how far removed and how hopelessly ineffective the Trust is.

These people are business men. There is always a sub text and agenda. We will end up where we end up and witless rhetoric from CCSC have no no influence on the process. Time to grow up and live in the real world.

-------------------------------------------------------------------
If I may be allowed a view before I am torn apart by some of the 'Heavies' who use this board to stamp on any opinions differing from their own, I would like to gently point out that , only the other day the trust was accused of being too gentlemanly in its statements as opposed to the steady roar of violent protest heard here. So now the Trust and associates are being too heavy handed in stating the desperate position clearly and pointing a finger at the usual suspects.

When a board starts being used to slag off individuals with whom you disagree then it merely becomes a line of nodding heads led by people who have their own personal agenda. This can be a great board if and when it ceases to be a home for spite and nonsense. Those who wish to attack this message --- please form a very long line.

The Malaysians are not idiots. The trust message will not tell them anything they don't know.


CAL

cal

your are 100% correct there should be no personal sniping but i cannot see any justification for the statement on a day when the malaysians have in my opinion come to do a deal.
as in my earlier post pmg have been well aware of the proposed deal certainly before steve went to malaysia.
to ask pmg to do the right thing when in my humble opinion they have been doing the right thing for this club in the last few months anyway is baffling to me.
regardless of what anybody thinks if the malaysians want the club they will have it on their terms.
what would pmg gain by administration apart from letting the malaysians get the club cheaper and killing our play off hopes.
what sensible business man would allow that to happen when he's into the club for 8 million plus

There is a similar thread to this running on Mike's board. Am now getting giddy flitting between both, so I'm going out, hope for some positive news later on.

Morning Steve,
Always glad to take on board reasonable opinions reasonably stated and you have solid points to make. However, there are too many personal agendas involved in some of the posts and I think it's time that the Trust was allowed to develop and make its way forward without being constantly kicked, sometimes by people not noted for their judgement or respect for the truth.

"We will either hang together gentlemen, or we will surely hang separately." Our club needs us --- all of us. Let's stop
being antagonistic and personal.


CAL

Morning Steve,
Always glad to take on board reasonable opinions reasonably stated and you have solid points to make. However, there are too many personal agendas involved in some of the posts and I think it's time that the Trust was allowed to develop and make its way forward without being constantly kicked, sometimes by people not noted for their judgement or respect for the truth.

"We will either hang together gentlemen, or we will surely hang separately." Our club needs us --- all of us. Let's stop
being antagonistic and personal.


CAL

100% agree cal
should never be about individuals and their ego's in any organisation as thats the road to ruin

Where has £40 Million come from? I thought £10 million langston.... what's the other £30 Million?

Ridsdale's Black Ops budget.

If anyone thinks that anything we do will have an impact on what goes on at the higher levels of this football club they are more naive than I thought. The statement, our thoughts, our actions... none of it really matters at the end of the day. Sadly, that is football. The club's fate rests at a boardroom table.

A very good statement, and it's made the BBC too (http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/footbal ... 574000.stm).

Both the Trust and things like the march can effectively put pressure on Ridsdale for the benefit of the club. Not sure why so many members on this MB (and, to be fair, some on Mike's board) don't see that.

I was baffled by the tone of this morning's statement, but there has now been a "clarification" issued on the other board which reads;

"To clarify a few points. Despite recent claims on the various messageboards, a deal with the Malaysians is far from done.

The details quoted in our joint statement were gleaned from several sources and we have also been in direct contact with the Malaysians, Steve Borley, etc. We wouldn't have gone to press with this statement if we weren't 100% sure of its accuracy.

The Malaysians have indeed made a formal offer, much of which will involve the purchase of shares to make them the largest shareholders in Cardiff CIty. There are a number of hurdles and conditions attached though, which whilst not insurmountable, are unlikley to be agreed overnight. Claims that things will be done and dusted by the weekend are we believe far fetched, but in our current plight time is indeed of the essence.

Ridsdale is now no more than a fly in the ointment - the Malaysians don't want him and whether he goes quietly or tries to claim his full compensation through the courts is neither here nor there. The real issue is that the Malaysians will not become major shareholders and saddle themselves with £40m of debt. In a couple of weeks the club will be in Admin and they could pick the club up for a lot less.

The whole deal hinges on the Malaysians coming to a deal with the many creditors. For unsecured creditors, it's fairly straightforward - if the club goes into Admin they will get far less (if anything) of what they are owed. We understand that a large proportion of the smaller creditors have already shown a willingness to negotiate - whether that's in the form of reducing what's owed or increasing payment terms is unknown.

The real crux of the matter here is the only secured creditors - Messrs Guy and Hall - PMG. For them, coming to an agreement with the Malaysians may reduce their pay off by more than what they think they can recover via the Admin route. In other words, they can make or break any deal and are the key players in all this.

CCSC and the Trust felt the time was right to exert some pressure on PMG. As local businessmen, they need to do the right thing by Cardiff City, as any other form of action would tarnish their reputation in South Wales. With Cardiff City only a couple of weeks from oblivion and a chance to be saved, we felt it was worth reminding them of this."

Now I am not privy to any inside information from either camp, so I cannot comment with any authority on the validity of what the Trust and Supporters Club are saying, but, on the face of it, the above makes sense and I can understand why they issued the statement they did.

Good post Bob.

I think the CCST were quite ingeneous with their statement, you need to read it more than once and Bobs statement is spot on.

I think the CCST were quite ingeneous with their statement, you need to read it more than once and Bobs statement is spot on.

Indeed Especially after seeing the clarification, it does seem like this is a well-timed statement which may well may Guy and Hall think twice if they are planning on screwing this club for the sake of their shareholding.

Well Bob's statement clarifies a hell of a lot.

If the idea is to offer PMG less than their secured credit and they may decide on admin instead, then the statement is putting pressure on the right people especially, as stated, they have made a nice amount of money from everything around the stadium.

The only bit missing is that Ridsdale should be dismissed immediately and we'll see him in court - if the current debt has risen to that level under his control then his actions and statements of late have been criminal.

as a member of the trust and a " lapsed " member the supporters club I put my faith in the people who have made that statement , which hopefully will see the club in safe hands in the near future