Troubled times ... will the Mariners players have to take action? Source: Mark Evans / News Limited
Angry Central Coast players are prepared to take strike action over the failure of the club to pay their wages on time.
The dramas at the embattled Mariners escalated after club officials again failed to come up with the money to pay the players their overdue monthly wage, which is now five days late.
The Australian, which broke the story of the club's financial battle earlier in the week, was told the players, who had been promised payment by Monday or Tuesday, met on Wednesday night in a bid to force the issue.
It is believed the players will strike, including not attending training and even boycotting matches, if they don't receive their money by close of business on Monday. Professional Footballers Australia is expected to issue a statement, backing the players.
Sources said the players, some of whom are in financial stress and have been forced to borrow money from friends, had lost patience and believe their only way to get action is to make the strongest possible statement.
The players had to be convinced to turn up to training this morning. On a day of ongoing developments, The Australian also learned:
The club's ownership problems remain unresolved.
One of the club's owners flew to Melbourne yesterday to talk to a consortium interested in taking over the club and is also headed interstate today looking at further options.
There are suggestions a Russian group with connections to a club in Moscow could be close to finalising a deal for the Mariners, who have lived with their financial plight for the past three or four seasons.
There is scepticism surrounding the Russians' interest given there have been talks with the club for 18 months and nothing has eventuated, despite their Australian-based representatives being in regular attendance at Central Coast games in the past two seasons.
According to ASIC records, Mariners owners Mike Charlesworth, chairman Peter Turnbull and Lyall Gorman - executive chairman of rival A-League club Western Sydney - jointly own 64 per cent of the club. They met for three hours on Tuesday night to discuss the situation.
It is understood multi-millionaire Englishman Charlesworth put forward an offer to Turnbull and Gorman late last week to take control of the club, assume its considerable debts and inject some much needed funds into the Mariners.
It is believed that Turnbull, who already has put $4 million into the club, is looking to step aside, but will remain as chairman until the end of the season.
There are also suggestions that should the well-connected Charlesworth take control he will install a new board as well as seek to bring in new investors, possibly from overseas.
The group issued a statement yesterday. "The majority ownership group are in discussions at this time regarding the ongoing future of the FC. There is a resolve and commitment among the owners to continue to subsidise and fund the operating deficits of the FC moving forward.
"These discussions are likely to result in a change in the mix of the ownership model, but all aimed at securing the future of the FC on the strongest possible footing. Any such change will not result in any variation from the well-established cultural and brand values of the Mariners."
There also remain conflict-of-interest fears in some quarters over the involvement of Gorman, who helped start the Mariners in 2004 and was head of the A-League before moving into his role at the Wanderers. It should be stressed he has not broken any rules as the Asian Football Confederation allows for multiple involvement in clubs.
The Mariners situation is being monitored by Football Federation Australia. Chief executive David Gallop told The Australian the head body wanted the situation sorted as quickly as possible.
"We are in constant contact with the various stakeholders at the club and we have impressed on them our desire to see their internal issues resolved urgently so that the pay situation is fixed," Gallop said.
"That said, it is a discussion among shareholders and it is not our place to adjudicate on a club owners' discussion."
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