THE Newcastle Jets owe their creditors at least $4.5million, while company records show Nathan Tinkler companies have loaned the club more than $14.7million since taking over in September 2010.
With potential liabilities of almost $20million, the Jets appear to be in far worse shape than initially thought when Tinkler, pictured, called in insolvency specialists Shaw Gidley on Wednesday to put the company behind the club into voluntary administration.
Shaw Gidley partner James Shaw told the Newcastle Herald on Thursday he had met senior representatives of Football Federation Australia and was hopeful a deal could be negotiated to settle a complex situation as fairly as possible.
Mr Shaw said he had not seen the full books but a summary of the loan account showed Tinkler companies had put $14,714,579 into Newcastle Jets Football Operations Pty Ltd, the company he had been appointed to run.
He said if Tinkler was prepared to “subordinate” his loan to allow other creditors to be paid first, there was a chance staff and unsecured creditors would be paid some of the money owed to them.
“It’s a very complex situation, because everyone involved has different interests and responsibilities,” he said.
“The FFA has pledged to field a Newcastle team in next season’s A-League, and its interest is obviously to ensure that the fans have a team and that the players, who they have said they will stand behind, are looked after. But when you look at the books, trade, tax and payroll liabilities total more than $4.5 million.
“I have to stress these are not final figures. They could move in either direction. But there’s a tax bill of almost $2.5 million. Payroll liabilities are $1.4million, including about $790,000 in unpaid super.
‘‘Trade creditors are owed more than $700,000. And then there’s the outstanding wages bill that triggered it all.
“From a Hunter community point of view, the best thing would be if the FFA agreed to use at least some of the money raised from a subsequent sale of the Newcastle licence to help those unsecured creditors caught up in the collapse of the Jets.
“If that happens, and the FFA accepts a restructure something along the lines of what the National Rugby League did with the Gold Coast Titans, and the FFA is able to sell the Newcastle licence to a new operator, then we could be able to set up some form of deed, whereby the trade creditors, the staff and the tax office receive some payments down the track.
“If not, then history shows that the ultimate outcome is likely to be liquidation, with a zero cents in the dollar return.”
Months of simmering tensions at the Jets exploded this week when the club was unable to pay a wages bill that would normally be covered by a monthly payment of $250,000 from the FFA.
But as Mr Shaw explained, this money is the subject of a “garnishee” issued by the tax office, which means the tax office gains access to some of the money.
“I am still seeking details of the garnishee but it seems the tax office has used it since late last year,” Mr Shaw said.
“When the wages bill wasn’t paid this week, the FFA said it would take the licence. Unable to pay his debts when they fell due, Nathan called us in under the relevant sections of the Corporations Act as administrator of Newcastle Jets Football Operations Pty Ltd, the company that held the Jets’ FFA licence.
“Then, a few hours later, the FFA took back the Newcastle licence on the basis of a series of breaches of the licence conditions.”
Mr Shaw met with FFA chief operating officer John Kelly and A-League head Damien de Bohun at Speers Point on Thursday.
He said the FFA had grounds for taking back the Jets’ licence, and he would not be challenging the decision. He was monitoring the interest a consortium led by Dundee United chairman Stephen Thompson was showing in the Newcastle licence.
Corporate records show Newcastle Jets Football Operations Pty Ltd is a $1 company owned by Hunter Valley Sports Group Pty Ltd, another $1 company owned in turn by Hunter Sports Group Pty Ltd.
Hunter Sports Group is also a $1 company, the sole share owned by Nathan Leslie Tinkler.
