SAINTS chairman Michael Wilde has pleaded with supporters to remain patient as he attempts to bring critically needed new investment into the club.

The lack of new investment during the Rupert Lowe era was one of the key points Wilde and his board of directors made prior to the aborted EGM in the summer.

Wilde won support from mega-wealthy lifelong Saints fan Gavyn Davies in the build-up to Lowe's resignation back in June.

Four months down the line, no new investment has been forthcoming.

And Wilde is sure to be grilled by shareholders as to his plans to bring any in when he and his fellow board members hold the Southampton Leisure Holdings PLC annual meeting at St Mary's next Tuesday.

If Saints don't go up this season, it will be imperative that the club have new investment in place if they want to continue challening for promotion.

Saints' £6.5m parachute payments as former members of the Premiership finish at the end of the current season.

That's just one financial black hole that will have to be plugged somehow by Wilde and his board.

The gap between the Premiership's haves' and the Championship's have nots' has never been bigger.

If Saints went up this season, they would bank a minumum £28m thanks to the new Sky TV deal coming into force in 2007/08. If they stay in the second tier, they can expect to only receive around £700,000 from the Championship's TV contract.

Speaking to the Daily Echo, Wilde remains adamant that shareholders and supporters should not press any panic buttons now.

"Discussions are ongoing with a number of people," he said. "This is price sensitive information we are dealing with so I can't name names or anything like that.

"I am looking at securing the club's long term future so that we can compete effectively whatever division we find ourselves in. That's my key objective.

"The financial review I am looking at has to be comprehensive.

"This is not a sticky plaster' scenario where we just have to find a couple of million to help us buy new players.

"If we wanted a couple of million, we could find it within the board.

"I'm not looking short term, I'm looking long term.

"Changing the management, as we did last summer, was only ever going to be the start of the process. It was never going to be an end to anything.

"We are looking at the various mechanics by which an AIM listed company can raise new money - be it new investors, directors loans, share rights issues.

"I can't say right now that we won't do a share rights issue or that we will undertake one.

"All I can say is that I am hopeful a long term solution will be found."

Full in-depth interview in today's Daily Echo