Dunfermline Athletic Football Club Press Release

We would like to clarify our position with regard to the publication of a recent press release from the newly-formed group The Pars Community.

We would like to clarify our position with regard to the publication of a recent press release from the newly-formed group The Pars Community.

While we welcome new ideas and the development of proposals for supporters' involvement and ownership of the Football Club, we are concerned that this press release has appeared without any reference to Dunfermline Athletic Football Club.

The Football Club has been working on a number of fronts to resolve its short-term cash flow problems and at the same time moving towards a new model of management and ownership.  In recent weeks the Club has brought its players' salaries up to date and has been able to pay a number of its creditors, including HMRC.  We are also in discussions with potential future investors and others in relation to commercial activity, and we have been able to enlist the support of the Purvis Group who have helped greatly to take some of these issues forward.

The Club has welcomed the establishment of the Pars Alive Group and has provided facilities and support for the group to develop its fund-raising activities.  It has met with representatives of all of the supporters groups at Dunfermline, having useful and constructive discussions and about the way forward, and agreed to have further meetings. The Club has made it known for some time that it intends to put out an offer to enable fans to become shareholders in the Club, and to help the club move towards a new model of management and ownership.  It has also offered fans the opportunity to consider the draft share issue document before its publication and a meeting is planned for that purpose shortly.

We have also been in discussion with Supporters Direct who, with their valuable past experience and knowledge of community share issue models, kindly agreed to help facilitate discussions on these issues.

We met with representatives of The Pars Community at their request and at just one day's notice on Wednesday afternoon.  We felt that the meeting was both helpful and productive and we agreed to have further discussions.  Unfortunately the publication of this press release is likely to cause confusion among our supporters and distract from the direction we have planned, and could also inhibit potential future investors and fans who wished to become shareholders in the future.  It also raises a number of questions since it makes no mention of existing business commitments nor what would happen to existing shareholders.  Dunfermline Athletic already has the Pars in the Community Programme so this could further confuse matters, and finally we are unsure as to which supporters this currently represents.

We are aware that issues surrounding the Club's recent financial situation have caused a great deal of rumour and speculation and have divided our fans about the best way forward.  Our view has always been that we need to all work together to find solutions - Dunfermline is not big enough to do otherwise.