Re: United chairman's statement

Having read the statement from Gary Harwood and some of the other posts on that site on the same subject re-inforces my view that a deal which involved City moving to the Abbey would be the end of our club as we know it.

Of course United fans want it, City's financial input would allow them to continue watching THEIR team at THEIR ground. City on the other hand would lose their identity completely.

United have missed the boat, they failed to attract appropriate financial backing when they were at the top of the (old) second division and only the play-offs separated them from being founder members of the Premiership. The ground remains practically unaltered from the early 1970s. They have sold a succession of players for big money but still find themselves in severe financial difficulties.

Within the last couple of years they have sold Benjamin, Butler and Abbey for combined transfer fees approaching something like £3M - what has happened to the money?

They may have a few promising young players but in the current climate they don't command the kind of transfer fee to stave of the creditors time and time again.

According to Ron Noades in excess of 700 out of contract professionals will be looking for new clubs over the summer as every team in the Nationwide League looks to slash it's wage bill as the ITV Digital money disappears. Under those conditions United will find it difficult to sell their contracted players for the kind of fee that will make any difference to their underlying financial difficulties.

With regards to the 're-developed' Abbey we are told that City would benefit from the earning potential of the conference facilities. Again I feel United are too late, Cambridge has huge capacity in this area already. Practically every Cambridge College offers conference facilities in surroundings no football club can come close to, it is a very competitive market, the Colleges have been doing it for years and they are very good at it.

Basically there is no convincing evidence that United have the ability to maximise any revenue making opportunities their newly developed ground might generate. Additionally their track record in making effective use of income they have acquired through the transfer of players should not make City want to join with them.

They will swallow up our investment, probably find themselves back where they are right now and City will cease to exist.