Ref. sir Seton WillsSIR Seton Wills has ridden to Swindon Town's rescue once again with the funds now in place to pay a VAT bill which had threatened to plunge the club into the abyss.

The club's major shareholder and benefactor has acted as personal guarantor in a loan deal which will see property giants St Modwen inject around £750,000 into the club.

Those funds were expected to drop into the Town account today although it is certainly not a case of the club's future having been secured indefinitely.

HM Customs and Excise had served a winding up petition on Town, having lost patience after a £500,000 bill remained unpaid.

Had a way not been found to inject fresh funds then the tax man could have effectively killed the club at the High Court next week.

It isn't quite a case of the club being completely out of the woods on the court front as the money still has to be paid and the creditor concerned has to acknowledge receipt of the funds, but the picture is certainly considerably brighter than 24 hours ago. Barring any further unwanted developments, a judge should give Town the all-clear to continue. Director Bob Holt was always confident a deal could be struck and had stressed the need to avoid panic.

However, there was no disguising his relief, albeit relief tinged with a warning.

He said: "To use a footballing clich I'm over the moon. We had a series of meetings yesterday and all the necessary documents have been studied and signed by Sir Seton and St Modwen.

"The terms of the loan have been agreed and the money will be despatched to the appropriate authority. The funds should be released on Wednesday morning."

St Modwen is the club's development partner and it is the company which will build Town's new stadium, whether it be on the current site or elsewhere.

However, while its cash may have technically saved the day, it is Sir Seton and his family who have come up trumps for the club once again. Mr Holt said: "Once again I think we have to acknowledge an incredible debt to Sir Seton and the Wills family.

"They have been our salvation more than once and will one day earn a place in football heaven."

However, supporters shouldn't think for an instance that Town's troubles are over. The money is a temporary fix more than anything else.

Mr Holt said: "This club is still losing between £500,000 to £1 million a year. We cannot sustain that indefinitely. That is why the discussions with the council and St Modwen are so important.

"We must be able to generate more revenue."

A spokesman for Customs and Excise said: "Obviously we will be looking for the debt to be settled. All I can say is that the individual who is offering to settle the debt needs to talk to the club and Customs.

"Customs would rather see companies continue to trade and obviously settle their bills than go down the road of forcing the issue."

View of the fans

SUPPORTERS under the illusion that a new stadium is a side issue for the club should have had their thoughts brought into focus by the crisis of the unpaid tax bill.

That is the view of Swindon Town Supporters' Trust spokesman Tony Norris.

He is confident that the club will not live or die by its appearance in the High Court next Wednesday. While the club seems confident of giving the tax man the £500,000 they owe him, Town will continue to be hamstrung by their inability to generate non-matchday revenue.

Norris said: "Not everyone has seen the stadium as a priority but I cannot stress enough how important it is.

"A new stadium will allow the club to bring in revenue from conferencing for example. It isn't a question of just building a new ground because other clubs are doing it and it looks impressive.

"Extra revenue would avoid this type of situation in the future."

Until that vision becomes a reality the club must squeeze out as much as they can from utilising the present facilities.

Norris feels that's where local businesses can help. Rather than simply throwing money at the club (which would be gratefully received) companies could hold events at the club.

He said: "If you are planning a business meeting or a seminar why not use the County Ground rather than a hotel?"

The more immediate issue of course is the tax man. Norris and his Trust colleagues have faith in Bob Holt and company to deliver the necessary funds. He doesn't see next Wednesday's High Court date as a black and white "make or break" scenario.

Norris said: "Even if the money isn't quite there then I'm confident the court would grant the board some extra time to resolve the situation if they

can demonstrate that the mechanism is there to pay the bill and assurances are given."

Jon Ritson