Court gives Plymouth Argyle time to clear tax bill

Plymouth Argyle have been given two months by a High Court judge to clear their debts with HM Revenue & Customs.

The club and a related company, Home Park Properties, were facing winding-up petitions over a tax debt of £760,000.

They asked for 56 days' grace at Wednesday's hearing, but were given 63 by the registrar.

The club told the court they are in the process of refinancing and also have an investor who is ready to put £500,000 into the cash-strapped outfit.

They also claimed that the tax bill of £760,000 is too high and they can make payments to bring it down to £280,000 in January.

The board and its advisors are continuing to work through a number of potential answers in order to put the club on a sound financial footing

Plymouth Argyle club statement

The club said they have £140,000 available in a bank account to help clear the debt, and that they are owed £48,000 by the Football League, which will be paid directly to HMRC.

Further funds could be raised by the sale of Argyle players during the January transfer window.

Following the hearing, a statement on the club's website said: "The board and its advisors are continuing to work through a number of potential answers in order to put the club on a sound financial footing.

"We are advised not to make any further comment at this time.

"When we have anything more to say we will advise you."

After being presented with the winding-up petition on 23 October, the club's bank account was frozen, leading to the non-payment of both playing and office staff at Argyle in November.

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The club will now seek a validation order from the courts to un-freeze their bank account and allow payments to be made.

The club recorded a £2.8m loss for the 2008/09 financial year and were previously issued with a winding-up order for unpaid tax by HMRC last season.

On the pitch, Argyle sit 17th in League One, three points above the relegation zone, and just 4,960 fans watched them beat Dagenham & Redbridge 2-1 in their last game, their lowest gate of the season.