FAI officials arrive in Derry

Derry City was expelled from the League of Ireland at the weekend

A delegation from the FAI has arrived in Derry to meet supporters and businessmen interested in becoming involved in the running of Derry City.

Club chairman Pat McDaid and three board members resigned on Tuesday.

The Brandywell side was expelled from the League of Ireland at the weekend over allegations it gave players secondary, unofficial contracts.

The FAI said it would be very difficult to work with anyone involved in the previous Derry City board.

Board member Stephen McCarron has refused to leave, because he said he has done nothing wrong.

The director of the FAI, Fran Gavin, said Mr McCarron's position is one of the issues which will be discussed.

The FAI's Chief Executive, John Delaney, said the body also wants to establish the extent of Derry City's debt.

"We've been told that it's somewhere between £0.5m and £800,000.

"There's money owed to the players, owed to some directors, to Dungannon Swifts, and I'm sure there is a series of creditors.

"I think it's important to establish the breadth of that debt and then they type of options that are available to the club - whether it can play, whether the club goes into a form of examinership, or does it go into a form of liquidation?"

Contract controversy

Derry City were expelled from the League of Ireland after the FAI said they broke regulations by holding secondary, unofficial contracts with players.

It is alleged these contracts were used to get round limits on the amount clubs can spend on players wages.

The club's players also released a statement on Tuesday night which distanced them from what they described as the Derry board's "wrongdoing".

A statement released on behalf of the Candystripes' players by the Professional Footballers' Association of Ireland, said that the events of the past week had come "as a major shock" and that they had always believed that their true salaries were being disclosed to the league.

The player said, that with one exception, none of them had knowingly signed a secret contract and accused the board of misleading them.

The Derry players' statement came shortly after the announcement of the resignation of club chairman Pat McDaid and three other directors.

McDaid said that his decision was "an important step to ensure Derry City return to the League of Ireland".

"It's quite clear my relationship with the FAI has reached a point of no return," he said.