Neath RFC was �750,000 in the red

Neath RFC was �750,000 in the red but a consortium of local businessmen bought the Gnoll outfit from the Welsh Rugby Union-fronted Gower Park Ltd.

The takeover group is led by new chairman and chief executive Geraint Hawkes, a lifelong supporter of the club, which now trades under the company name of Neath Rugby Ltd.

Player contracts before the move to regional rugby were largely responsible for the losses, but significant sums were also owed to customs and excise, the inland revenue and the WRU.

But with Gower Park Ltd going under, it appears that the responsibility for the old Neath RFC contracts and the other debts have sunk with the company.