Jersey Reds' assets to be auctioned off to recoup £3.1 million owed to creditors

At the time the club collapsed, Jersey Reds owed creditors more than £3.1 million but only owned assets worth around £142k. Credit: ITV Channel

Assets belonging to the collapsed rugby union club Jersey Reds will be auctioned off to help try and recoup some of the £3.1 million owed to creditors.

Accountancy firm Grant Thornton has been appointed to oversee the club's liquidation.

Club director Brian Morris said it was originally hoped that the Reds would be able to play through the 2023/24 season, but delays by the RFU in restructuring Premiership and Championship Rugby led to investors withdrawing their financial backing.

At a meeting of creditors held at St Paul's Centre in St Helier on Wednesday 25 October, the club's financial affairs were set out.

As of Monday 23 October, the club's assets were estimated to be worth around £142,714 - made up of cash, sellable stock and other equipment.

However, documents seen by ITV News reveal the club owed its creditors £3,146,077.

Even if the club is able to sell off its assets for the estimated value, it would leave an outstanding £3,003,363 unpaid.

When the club folded, it owed more than £500,000 to its main sponsor Santander International, as well as nearly £1 million to Jersey Reds (2022) Ltd - the umbrella company set up to oversee both the professional and amateur club in a 2022 restructuring of the business.

Creditors were told while Jersey Reds' assets will be sold off, the club will likely still owe more than £3 million.

Alan Roberts from Grant Thornton explained: "We have the responsibility to realise what assets we can and recover what we can for the benefit of creditors.

"If there is a prospect of a dividend to creditors then we will then what's called adjudicate or test the claims to make sure they are valid claims in the liquidation."

He continued: "One of the first points we will be working on is employee claims to make sure the employees have the right entitlement under the Jersey Insolvency Benefit Scheme which is the scheme administered by the government but which we as the liquidators have a key role in ensuring their claims are made validly and paid out as best they can be."

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