Worcester will pay players' salaries in full

Worcester will pay players’ salaries in full

Steve Diamond guided Worcester to victory in the Premiership Rugby Cup final in May

Worcester said all of its players would be paid on Wednesday as the current owners insist they have ‘three motivated and credible buyers’ with ‘proven funds’.

The Warriors withdrew early from Friday’s pre-season game against Glasgow amid continued uncertainty over their future.

The Premiership club have received a winding-up petition from HMRC over unpaid taxes, believed to be over £6m.

Non-playing staff will also receive 65% of their August wages overnight and on Thursday, according to a club statement.

There would be “a solution that would see the rest paid within five working days”, he added.

Worcester are due to start the new Premiership season at London Irish on September 10.

The club also received a £14million loan from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport during the Covid pandemic.

Although a consortium led by former chief executive Jim O’Toole remains interested in taking over the club from current owners Jason Whittingham and Colin Goldring, their plan would involve the club being placed in administration.

Whittingham said that while the pair had “worked to find the investment that will allow Worcester Warriors to play Premiership rugby at Sixways for years to come”, they were also focusing on “the important short-term task of s ‘ensure we can pay our loyal and appreciated staff and players this month’.

“I am happy to say that we have secured funding,” he added. “We will honor the terms of our players’ contracts and pay them in full for August today. This is of course crucial to retaining our talented squad for this season.”

“Uncertainty and Insecurity”

Whittingham said with payment of wages “in hand”, he and Goldring could focus on the “long-term survival of the club”.

They are “ready to sell the entire Sixways group of companies and the options being considered include the sale of all assets”, he added.

Goldring said the owners regretted “the uncertainty and insecurity that our people have to endure.”

“The dedication and loyalty of staff and players is second to none and we thank them for that,” he added.

“We continue to work towards a solution that will see Worcester Warriors play this season and for seasons to come.

“Once again we thank our supporters, partners, sponsors, staff, players and the local community for the support and interest they have shown in the club.”

Earlier a statement from the club, posted on Director of Rugby Steve Diamond’s Twitter pageexternal linkconfirmed that Friday’s match against Glasgow had been called off.

“We express our deep sadness to our hosts Glasgow Warriors who we hope understand the unique and worrying situation we find ourselves in,” he said.

“It’s just not possible to play when the future remains uncertain and a decision has to be made today.

“It is unethical for professional players to play a full game with the risk of injury and the real possibility of not having a job to follow.”

The Glasgow team had already made the journey north to Inverness, where the game was to be played.

“While we are disappointed with this result, we recognize the difficult situation Worcester currently find themselves in and wish them well,” the club said in a statement.


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