ONE of the parties interested in buying Saints is set to move to a final stage of due diligence.

The group being led by businessmen Marc Jackson and Stuart Green are understood to have been given the green light to get further access to the club’s books after the Bank Holiday weekend.

However, they are not in a period of exclusivity.

Several potential purchasers have baulked at the prospect of having to put down a non-refundable deposit of £500,000 to enter the final stage of due diligence and gain exclusivity.

But it appears that some sort of a deal has been struck whereby the Jackson and Green group could still be trumped by another other party but can take a closer look at the club’s finances.

It is not clear whether all interested parties who can prove their funds will get access to a final due diligence stage but if so it could be a clever ploy by administrator Mark Fry to move things along with talks having dragged on and on.

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