BBC investigates takeover turmoil behind Morecambe suspension
Does Morecambe's suspension come as a surprise?
Current majority shareholders Bond Group, led by businessman Whittingham, purchased Morecambe in May 2018. By September 2022, Whittingham had put the club up for sale.The club has since been relegated twice, and no takeover has been completed in that time.Whittingham has been a director at 25 companies during his career, according to Companies House. Of those 25 companies, 18 have been either dissolved, voluntarily dissolved, put into administration, put into liquidation, or put into receiver action (the precursor stage to liquidation).Two of Whittingham's companies had been dissolved by compulsory strike-off prior to his takeover of Morecambe - but he still passed the EFL's owners' and directors' test.At 21 of the companies, Whittingham was joint director with business partner Colin Goldring - a legal worker turned entrepreneur - including at Morecambe until Goldring's resignation in August 2022.Whittingham and Goldring were disqualified as company directors for 12 months following a court hearing in 2022. Goldring has also been barred by the Solicitors Regulation Authority from working for any law firm without clearance.The pair also ran Worcester Warriors rugby club, which went into liquidation in 2022.
What has happened with the latest Morecambe takeover bid?
Whittingham says he has been trying to sell the club to a consortium led by Jonny Cato, but said over the weekend that Cato has been put off completing a deal "by continual negative press statements impacting on the club".Since Whittingham named Cato as a bidder 10 days ago, Cato has not been seen or heard publicly. In fact, there is no businessman with the name Jonny Cato listed on Companies House, and the only person on professional networking website LinkedIn with the name Jonny Cato is a Swedish MP.The BBC contacted a man with a slightly different spelling of the name, the only such person with a credible business background in the UK, and were informed he has nothing to do with a potential bid for the club.So who is Cato? Why does he have no business footprint in the UK? Does he exist?Whittingham has not responded to requests for interview from the BBC.
What is behind Panjab Warriors' Morecambe bid?
Whittingham also says fellow bidder Panjab Warriors, who announced they had agreed a deal to take over the club earlier this summer, have gone quiet and are refusing contact.The BBC understands Panjab Warriors were so convinced their takeover deal would imminently be confirmed that they lined up a replacement who had agreed to take over from current manager Derek Adams.Panjab Warriors threatened legal action over their takeover not being completed and said they have already invested millions of pounds into the club to keep it afloat.On Monday, lawyers representing Morecambe's minority shareholders announced they had not been able to contact any representative from Panjab Warriors for a week, rendering their attempt to force a sale through impossible.On their website Panjab Warriors state they "invest in sporting excellence" and "execute deals that drive value". But the group does not list any specific investments, and no information about other investments is listed publicly.The origin of the group's money is also unclear. At least 75% of Panjab Warriors' shares are owned by a company called JKM Capital, which is majority-owned by businessman Kuljeet Singh Momi.Records show he has been involved in 15 companies during his career, the vast majority of which have been established since 2023, but none appear to have made notable profit.JKM's latest accounts describe it as a "dormant" company and list its current cash in hand as £100.
Several of Singh Momi's businesses note the involvement of Sarbjot Johal, a young entrepreneur who was heavily linked with a takeover of the club in 2023.Johal's bid - and youth - earned him plenty of press coverage, but no takeover was ever completed after the extent of his wealth was thrown into doubt.The exact nature of Singh Momi and Johal's business relationship is not clear, but Singh Momi released a statement last year saying he has cut ties with Johal.Panjab Warriors have not responded to repeated attempts at contact by the BBC.
What does the future hold for Morecambe?
Morecambe's staff and players were paid only a third of their wages in June. Any payments for July have not yet been publicly disclosed.The club has a squad of just 10 senior players and has cancelled pre-season friendlies. If and when a sale will be completed - and whether whoever the eventual buyers are represent the financial salvation the club desperately needs - remains to be seen.But unless a sale is somehow pushed through before the 20 August deadline, the potential of expulsion - or the club ultimately folding - cannot be ruled out.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Lionesses captain Leah Williamson sends emotional nine-word statement to fans as she laps up Euro 2025 victory parade
After an emotional, erratic 10 minutes for Lionesses captain Leah Williamson, which saw her bawling her eyes out down the Mall, she uttered the words every English football fan wanted to hear: 'Stay with us — this story is not done yet.' England celebrated their second European crown in style on Tuesday afternoon with an open-top bus parade that delivered them to the gates of Buckingham Palace, drawing a 65,000-strong crowd. It was a marked upgrade on the Trafalgar Square celebrations following their 2022 triumph, which was hastily assembled and capped at 7,000. This time, the event was planned in advance and emphatically dispelled defender Esme Morgan's concerns that there would not be enough people to fill the space. A choked-up Williamson told the crowd: 'I'm in the trenches, I am holding back tears. I have been crying all the way down the Mall, this is unbelievable.' Then the 28-year-old Arsenal defender added, with a nod to the upcoming World Cup in Brazil in 2027: 'Stay with us — this story is not done yet.' Lucy Bronze, who defied logic by playing the tournament with a fractured tibia, was asked by former England international Alex Scott whether she planned to hang up her boots. The defender replied simply: 'Not yet!'
South Wales Argus
3 hours ago
- South Wales Argus
Barnet v Newport County: David Hughes starts with Carabao Cup win
Summer signing Ged Garner saw his effort saved first up, but Swansea City loanee Ben Lloyd, Cameron Antwi, Bobby Kamwa and Cameron Evans confidently dispatched theirs to secure the win after Joe Hugill hit the post and Nik Tzanev kept out Kane Smith's spot-kick. Two superb first-half strikes from Antwi and summer signing Michael Reindorf looked to be enough to get the David Hughes era off to a flying start in normal time, but a spectacular collapse in the final few minutes of stoppage time allowed Barnet to score in the 97th and 99th minute to take the preliminary round tie to penalties. (Image: Kian Abdullah/Huw Evans Agency) County rode their luck at times and were thankful to several excellent saves from new goalkeeper Tzanev, but this was a relatively encouraging start to Hughes' reign in the end, despite the crazy ending. As well as Tzanev and Reindorf, Hughes also handed competitive debuts to centre-back Lee Jenkins and midfielders Matt Smith, and Ben Lloyd, who officially joined on Monday after impressing during pre-season. Newly-promoted Barnet, playing their first League Cup tie in eight years, were missing last season's top scorer Callum Stead due to injury but they did field former Exiles loanees Emmanuel Osadebe and Anthony Hartigan in midfield. And the hosts made much the better start as they dominated possession and chances for the opening half hour. Ryan Glover gave young right wing-back Joe Thomas a tough examination all night and his dangerous cross from the left beat everyone early on, before Thomas cleared from under his own crossbar shortly afterwards. Glover then saw a cross from the left well cleared by Smith, who looked a classy addition in midfield before being forced off at half-time. A clumsy challenge by Tom Davies after 15 minutes conceded a free-kick in dangerous area and Adam Senior headed wide at the far post. Tzanev was then out quickly to narrow the angle and deny Zak Brunt a shot on goal before Matt Baker blocked Joe Hugill's goal-bound effort and Zak Brunt scooped a shot way over the top from distance. It took 20 minutes for County to seriously threaten at the other end. It came from good hold-up play by Courtney Baker-Richardson, who laid off for Antwi. His shot was blocked before Smith's effort with the outside of his right boot forced new Barnet keeper Joe Wright into his first save, low to his right. But it was back down the other end straightaway and Manchester United loanee Joe Hugill missed a big chance when failed to make contact with his head just yards from goal after Idris Kanu's cross from the right. There was no let-up from the National League champions as Osadebe turned and shot straight at Tzanev from inside the 18-yard-box. County were second-best at that stage, but they nearly snatched the lead on 29 minutes when Reindorf pounced on a short pass by Wright, only for defender Ollie Kensdale to divert his shot over the bar. And two minutes later the Exiles were ahead with a magnificent strike out of the blue from Anwti. The former Cardiff City midfielder Antwi endured a mixed debut season at Rodney Parade, but he began the new campaign in some style with the opener on 31 minutes - a sublime right-foot volley from the edge of the area after a hopeful punt from Thomas was headed into his path by Jenkins. Barnet would have felt aggrieved to be behind and they attempted to hit back straightaway, but Thomas did well to clear the danger at the far post from Hartigan's cross. County could have had a second when Antwi's cross from the right was nodded on by Reindorf and headed goalwards by Baker-Richardson but his effort was straight at Wright and the striker took a blow to the head that may well have led to his substitution early in the second half. There was still time for Barnet defender Danny Collinge to fluff a shot from six yards and Antwi to blot hos copybook with a yellow card for what the referee deemed a dive before Reindorf took centre stage. The Bluebirds loanee served notice of his talent with an exquisite second goal to put the Exiles in charge three minutes before the break. The 20-year-old Londoner beat two men before curling a powerful effort into the top corner from 20 yards to the disbelief of almost everyone at The Hive Stadium. Tzanev still had to be at his best to keep it at 2-0 at the break, however, as he palmed away a Collinge header in the 45th minute and tipped a rocket of a shot from Brunt over the bar in stoppage time. (Image: Kian Abdullah/Huw Evans Agency) The second half was a more low-key event until the very end, with the visitors largely content to hold on to their lead. And they looked like doing so relatively comfortably until a chaotic final few minutes of stoppage time as first Galvin and then Rhys Browne scored from close range to unexpectedly take the tie the full distance. Barnet (4-3-3): J Wright; I Kanu, D Collinge (R Galvin, 81), A Senior, R Glover (K Smith, 67); O Kensdale, E Osadebe (D Adeniran, 46), A Hartigan; Z Brunt (S High, 67), J Hugill, M Shelton (R Browne, 67) Subs not used: R Crichlow-Noble, O Evans, R Matyar, N Ofoborh, K Smith Booked: I Kanu County (3-5-2): N Tzanev; L Jenkins, J Clarke, M Baker; J Thomas, M Smith (C Evans, 46), C Antwi, B Lloyd, T Davies (A Glennon, 72); M Reindorf (B Kamwa, 63), C Baker-Richardson (G Garner, 49) Subs not used: M Alexander-Walker, Corey Evans, H Ogunneye, N Sanca, J Wright Booked: C Antwi, L Jenkins Referee: D Drysdale
BBC News
4 hours ago
- BBC News
Newport win on penalties to advance in EFL Cup
Newport County gave manager Dave Hughes his first competitive win in charge as they secured their place in the first round of the EFL Cup with a 4-2 victory on penalties at Antwi and Michael Reindorf scored in the first half against the newly promoted League Two side, who were last season's National League Galvin pulled a goal back for Barnet deep in stoppage time before Rhys Brown equalised with seconds remaining of normal time to make it 2-2 and take the game to keeper Nik Tzanev saved Kane Smith's before Cameron Evans converted to secure a 4-2 shootout win to book a home tie against Championship club Millwall in the first roundThe tournament introduced a preliminary round to accommodate the increased number of Premier League clubs with European commitments.
