Daily Update

The Argyle takeover saga has continued to stutter on over the past couple of days, as it appears Brendan Guilfoyle is slowly edging towards forcing Bishop International into finally providing some more cash to add to the £300k (rather than £1m, as promised) that they paid for exclusivity. Brenda's statement claims that the club needs £270,000 from the PB to pay August's wage bill. It also insuates that, should BIL fail to complete, the door may be opened for the Brent/Trust contingency plan, providing that they are able to provide "immediate funding".

Whilst that may have raised hopes that the Heanster was about to be kicked to the curb, Brenda's appearance on Radio Devon this morning saw him reiterate the old line that BIL will complete the deal once they come up with the cash (next week, apparently). However, August 12th has now been set as the expiry date for exclusivity. How firm that deadline is remains to be seen.

The other main point in Brenda's interview is the necessity to obtain the Golden Share and approval on the takeover deal from the Football League. This afternoon the Trust released a letter from the FL, which revealed that they've spoken to the Preferred Bidders but are yet to reach a decision on whether or not to give the deal the green light. Other points of interest include the reference to the differing positions of the Trust and the city council, along with the general tone of the letter; it reads as if they only just stopped themselves from adding "please do not contact us on this matter again" at the end.

The key players behind the Contingency Plan (minus the council, presumably) held a conference call this afternoon to coordinate their response to the latest developments, the details of which you can see on PASOTI.

In other news, Plymouth Argyle are playing a game of football tomorrow. In the run-up to the match against Shrewsbury Town Peter Reid and many of his squad have been speaking to the press. You can read all of the print interviews on Greens On Screen, whilst Peter Reid's chat to Radio Devon is here. The interviews with Carl Fletcher are definitely worth reading, I particularly liked this passage:

“I think it’s important for everyone at the club to give something back to the fans, who have been great going through all this. They have had two relegations in the last two years, and it has been hard on them. Some of them have been watching Plymouth Argyle for years and years, a lot longer than I have been here, so it would be nice to give something back to them. It’s unbelievable what the Green Taverners, and all the other people who have raised money, have done. They have been helping the office staff out when they have not been getting paid. I can’t speak highly enough of them, to be honest. People have got medals, and MBEs, for doing less than what they have done...Through all the bad stuff that has happened, the good thing that has come out of it is there has been a real bond between the fans and the players. That definitely wasn’t here when I first came to the club, and we want to keep it."

Excited about tomorrow now? Course you are.

If you want to read all the Argyle news without clicking on a load of links, why not head over to Greens On Screens' Daily Diary?