Southend United is battling against a financial crisis which could see the club in the hands of the administrator within days.

With the new soccer season less than a month away, Blues face a winding up order at the Royal Courts of Justice next Wednesday, for a £400,000 debt owed to the Inland Revenue.

However, the club's major shareholder Ron Martin said the football club's owners, Billericay property developers Martin Dawn, were doing everything in their power to keep the financially-fragile club afloat.

But he also revealed the club were bracing themselves for a £1.6million loss this financial year.

"We are currently involved in meetings with lawyers in an attempt to try and resolve this problem," he said. "Ever since taking over the football club we have been gradually reducing our £900,000 debt to the Inland Revenue.

"But we missed a payment last October and they have requested immediate settlement of the outstanding balance.

"The last thing we want is for this case to reach the courts and we are hopeful of stopping it from getting that far. But we haven't got a bottomless pit of money to call upon.

"However, if we fail to settle the situation before then we will request a deferral and a rescheduling of the club's finances."

Mr Martin also hit out at remarks made by Blues chairman John Main calling for more financial assistance from property company Delancey. The company is expected to fund the proposed £46m leisure park on Southend's Fossetts Farm site, which would include a new stadium for the Blues.

Mr Main has asked Delancey for a financial commitment which would safeguard cash-strapped Blues until the new £12.5m ground was built.

Mr Martin said: "John needs to remember that we are a team - Delancey, Martin Dawn and the football club - and we all need to pull together. He also needs to remember he is an employee of Martin Dawn."

Mr Main replied: "There's nothing I want more than to work as a team.

"As for my position as a Martin Dawn employee, my allegiance is to the club. If that means resigning from my post as a director of Martin Dawn and becoming a director of Southend United, then so be it!"

Mr Main believed the club could still avoid the administrator taking over the running of the Roots Hall club.

"I won't even consider this football club falling into administration as it is completely unnecessary, although very worrying," he added.

"We've done a lot of hard work here laying a solid foundation for the future and I can't believe that our major shareholder will fail to support us in our hour of need. One such area that concerns me is our youth development scheme.

"We have a £200,000 a year commitment to this project, which is vital to our future and I don't want to see it become a casualty of the administrator's cost-cutting axe.

"I will fight to do everything I can to keep this club's head above water."

Meanwhile worried Blues supporters have urged Delancey to get the cheque book out and save their club.

Paul FitzGerald, spokesman for Southend United's official supporters' club, said: "It's high time that somebody sorted out this awful mess.

"Delancey are supposed to be funding our new ground at Fossetts Farm, which will be part of a major multi-million pound leisure park development.

"I can't see the council letting them build a leisure park without accommodating the football club first. If we die, then so does their investment."

He said he hoped Delancey could help the club with its £400,000 tax debt.

Today (Friday) Delancey hit back and said they will not bail out United.

The property developer, a major shareholder of the club through Martin Dawn Plc, was a business and not a charity, said deputy chairman Colin Wagman.

Responding to calls from supporters that they should settle the £400,000 Inland Revenue bill which is subject of next week's winding up order, he said: "Delancey Estates is a publicly quoted company and has responsibilities to its shareholders.

"It is not a charity nor a benefactor and it is not established to help out football clubs."

He added: "If the club folds we lose a great deal of money. But I don't know anyone who would invest money unless they saw a reasonable chance of commercial response.

"We are in business and therefore we do not make donations of that sort."

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