March deadline for Football League administration if worst happens to Saints

Clubs who take the step before March 26 will be penalised immediately.

If they wait until after that date, the situation changes.

Initially, no deduction will be made and they will play out the season as normal.

If they are subsequently relegated, they will start the next season on minus-ten points.

However, if they finish outside the drop zone, the ten points will be taken off after the final game of the season.

If that causes them to slip into the relegation zone, they would then go down.

That means, in order to be safe, any club entering administration after March 26 must effectively finish ten points above the bottom three.

Despite some reports, there is no suggestion Saints will have to make such a decision, though.

Although they are reliant on support from Barclays Bank, as well as the stadium loan note holder Norwich Union, the board has been implementing cuts to bring costs down.

Many of the higher wage earners have been loaned out and other staffing reductions have been made.

To date, those measures seem to have met with approval, as the club has retained the bank and loan note holder’s support.

Should that support ever be removed, the situation would obviously change.

The club has said it is continuing to do all it can to improve its financial standing and satisfy the bank and note holder.

A spokesman told the Daily Echo: “The club’s financial situation has been laid down in black and white by the Independent Auditor’s Report in the latest set of accounts.

“Whilst the club is being run in the best interests of our supporters, the playing staff and our shareholders, we remain reliant on the support of our bankers and loan note holders.”

The regulations over the points deduction system were brought in during 2007, after Leeds, who were as good as relegated from the Championship, went into administration to avoid a ten-point deduction the following season.

Although they eventually started the next campaign on minus-15 points, for not following Football League rules on entering administration, the loophole was closed.

Boston United also entered into a Company Voluntary Agreement that same year as they were about to be relegated to the Conference, in a bid to avoid a deduction the following season.

Although, in theory, they were successful, they were eventually demoted an extra division, to the Conference North, for breaking regulations over the terms of the CVA.

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