Chorley FC has been hit with a winding-up petition by HM Revenue and Customs, even as the non-League club bids to tempt Irish pop stars Boyzone to be its very own Ryan Reynolds.
The news that the taxman is seeking to liquidate the National League North side has certainly spiced up the bizarre story, that has literally only broken in the last 24 hours, that the club is attempting to woo Ronan Keating and co into performing their very own Welcome to Chorley manoeuvre and become “the face” of the club.
Chorley’s chief operating officer, Tom Clarke, apparently confirmed the Boyzone discussions on Wednesday in an interview with Telegraph Sport but was strangely silent over the small matter of a winding-up petition filed the previous day.
The club itself also went public yesterday with the news that Keating, Lynch, Duffy and McFadden would attend Chorley’s FA Trophy fifth-round tie against Solihull Moors on Saturday ahead of further talks about what would now appear to be a rather urgent cash injection.
The club was taken over last July by Reset Events owner Prince Yemoh who promised “ambitious vision” and and an “exciting new chapter.” As our previous story noted, however, exactly where the funding for this was coming from isn’t entirely clear.
Chorley FC have told BBC Lancashire the winding up order was an “oversight” and should be remedied within 24 hours.
Chorley FC advised us yesterday that we should “stay tuned” for more news. They weren’t wrong.
*Update: On Friday February 9, Chorley FC issued the following statement:
“We wish to address recent speculation in the media regarding a HMRC winding up petition. We can confirm categorically that no petition has been served and the club remains financially stable. Any reports suggesting otherwise are inaccurate and simply a result of oversight and clerical error. We appreciate the concern of our supporters and assure them that the club’s operations continue without disruption. Thank you for your continued support.”
