BURY owner Steve Dale claimed he had saved the club — just two hours before an EFL extinction-threatening deadline.
Dale had been given until 11.59pm last night to either provide the EFL proof he could fund the League One side this season or hand it over to someone who can.
And with just 120 minutes to spare, Dale told SunSport: “Bury has been rescued. I have sold the club and now it is up the EFL to ratify it.”
An EFL statement at 11.57pm read: “The EFL has this evening received notification that Steve Dale has accepted an offer from C&N Sporting Risk for the sale of Bury FC.
“We are currently in discussions with the potential purchaser and await information to allow the Board to consider a request for an extension to Friday’s deadline.”
Dale refused to reveal who he had sold it to, but Rory Campbell and Henry Newman’s C&N Sporting Risk did make a bid yesterday, having been working closely with Bury North MP James Frith.
Campbell is the son of former Labour spin doctor and Burley fan Alastair, while Newman was Barnet joint-manager between December 2016 and early 2017.
BRANDED A MONSTER
They released a statement which read: “Over the past 10 weeks we have been in discussions with Bury FC, the EFL and others with a view to putting forward a proposal to buy the club.
“It is a very complicated scenario and there remain a number of outstanding legal and other issues that have to be addressed.
“Our background is in football and data analytics and it should therefore not be surprising that we are taking a very detailed forensic look at the realities of Bury FC finances.
“A club like Bury ought to have a viable long-term future. To that end we have been in discussions with the EFL about an extension so that we can continue to explore the prospects for a purchase.”
Dale, who wanted a minimum £560,000 to sell up, is believed to have accepted £200,000.
But just hours earlier, he was branded a “monster” and “a disgrace” by shattered Bury fans after begging them to find £2.7million to save the club.
BOUGHT CLUB FOR £1
MP Frith demanded a probe into the sale of £7m of club debt for £70,000 to RCR Holdings, which is alleged to be owned by Kris Richards, the partner of Dale’s daughter.
Dale declined to comment specifically on the RCR purchase or on whether Richards is his daughter’s partner, but said: “All dealings with the CVA have been done in a proper manner.”
Dale, who bought Bury for £1 in December, had earlier told talkSPORT: “We are going to the public and saying right, make a pledge to Bury.
“If they come and say we’ll put £100 in, £1,000 in, if the big players put in £100,000, £500,000, whatever, we want it pledged to the company. We need £2.7m to save Bury.”
He also asked for help from Manchester’s Prem giants United and City and told BBC Radio Five Live:
“I’d never been to Bury, I didn’t even know there was a football team from Bury.”
What Bury’s EFL Exit Means For League 1 and League 2 Promotion And Relegation
BURY have until 11.59pm tonight to save themselves from expulsion from the EFL.
If the Shakers are thrown out, it would leave League One down to 23 teams and affect promotion and relegations in two division.
One fan tweeted: “The man is a disgrace.”
Another wrote: “It’s is not down to any other club to save Bury, it’s down to the EFL and that monster Dale.”
Bury are £9m in debt including a £3.7m loan to Capital Bridge Financing, who effectively own Gigg Lane and the club car park.
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