Caley Thistle have taken a major step on the road to recovery after former chairman Alan Savage confirmed they have wiped out more than £3 million of loans owed to seven key stakeholders.
Savage was last week drafted in as a consultant by Inverness’ interim chairman Panos Thomas, tasked with overseeing the organisational restructure of the club in order to rectify their financial issues.
Savage has now confirmed that seven stakeholders – former chairman Ross Morrison, along with David Cameron, Alan Munro, Roddy Ross, Graeme Bennett, Liam Dalgarno and George Fraser – have agreed to either convert their loans to equity or waive them completely.
Savage hailed it as a major step in addressing the club’s balance sheet, after Caley Jags posted a £588,000 loss in their latest accounts in July.
He said: “I think the club has won a watch.
“I think it is fair to say that all of these guys tried, in their own way, to move the club forward, but some of their ideas were quite optimistic and difficult, and they didn’t come off.
“Today, they all agreed they would turn their loans into equity or waive them completely, which lifts a massive burden off the club and turns the balance sheet around completely.
“We want to have an open and honest relationship with the fans, all the stakeholders, and get rid of this cloud that has been hanging over the club.”
Former chairman Morrison played key role
Morrison, who stepped down as chairman in the summer shortly after the club’s relegation to League One, waived the biggest stake, having been owed over £2 million in loans.
Savage hailed the co-operation of Morrison, who spent nearly five years in the chairman’s role.
He added: “He came today to the meeting at 11am and expressed he is a big fan of the club, he has the tattoo. He’s going to come to games in the future.
“It is all straightened out and he couldn’t be more cooperative. Him and David Cameron have some good ideas about the property and the years old discussion about who owns the car parks etc.
“We have a written, minuted meeting and we all know where we stand.
“I’m trying to bring clarity and all the stakeholders on board.
“I thank Ross – he did us a good turn today.”
Savage maps out Caley Jags’ next steps
In mapping out Caley Thistle’s next steps, Savage has vowed to liaise with creditors in a bid to settle outstanding bills the club owes.
Savage is also looking at ways to bring money into the club however, including by recouping sums owed to them for advertising boards around the stadium.
He named former chairman Dougie MacGillivray, and his son Iain, of Weldex as being key figures who will be on board in aiding the club’s recovery.
Savage also revealed he has struck up an agreement with Tomatin Distillery’s Stephen Bremner who will supply commemorative bottles of whisky to mark the club’s 30-year anniversary, and already paid the club £50,000 up front before any sales.
Savage is keen to work closely with the local business community and the Caley Thistle fanbase in order to forge a bright future.
He added: “A lot of people are prepared to help. I’ve got the loans out of the way and there’s people pledged to help the club going forward.
“We’re going to appeal to the community and the fans to get behind the club.
“The mission is to win our next game and get promotion.
“Once I’ve got the club in complete order and we’re happy with it, we’re going to go out to the market and look to sell the club.”
Sir Alex offers support to Caley Jags and boss Ferguson
Savage revealed he spoke with Sir Alex Ferguson over the weekend, with the highly successful former Manchester United and Aberdeen boss offering his support for Caley Jags manager Duncan Ferguson.
Savage added: “I’ve had a chat with the manager and he’s coming on board.
“Yesterday I got a phone call from Sir Alex Ferguson. He said I could call him Alex, which is massive to me as a Manchester United fan.
“He sang Duncan’s praises, said he was a great lad and for us to stick with him and he will turn this club around on the football side.
“That was a big move.
“I asked him if he could have a word with Erik ten Hag, and get Garnacho to play for us, which he laughed at.
“But he said he is going to help us, which is very, very important and he may even come to a game.
“That’s all good news.”
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