CHERRIES chairman Peter Phillips is due to go to court in November to fight for the future of the club because one of their secured creditors has applied to repossess the stadium.

Although he is says he is optimistic the club will be able to reach an "amicable agreement" before the hearing, he believes the club will have a strong case if it reaches the courtroom.

In his weekly column featured in the sports section of today's Daily Echo, Mr Phillips writes: "It is no surprise that many of our own supporters do not take it too seriously when we claim to have a financial crisis that could close us down."

He added: "If you still think I am crying wolf, I should tell you that one of our secured lenders has applied to repossess the stadium. The case is due to be held in Bournemouth County Court in early November.

"The football club would probably survive in some form, but we would have no home."

He goes on to say the club needs new investment and calls for wealthy football fans and regular supporters to dig deep.

The club owes money to five secured lenders and they are Bristol and West Investments Plc, Lloyds Bank, Northover and Gilbert, of which Cherries backer Stanley Cohen is a director, Fitness First and former chairman Tony Swaisland.

The court hearing news is the latest saga in the club's financial situation.

In a bid to climb out of trouble the club launched CherryShare II on September 2 and to date has collected more than £55,000 from fans. Part of the scheme allows members to elect that their cash is used to help pay off the "expensive" Bristol and West loan.

At the recent meeting Mr Phillips gave fans a rundown of the cash-strapped club's most pressing problems, which include a £350,000 debt to the Inland Revenue and a £300,000 debt to Bristol and West Investments at an annual interest rate of 13 per cent.

Mr Phillips said on Friday: "I am still optimistic that we will be able to reach an amicable agreement and the matter won't come to court. But if it does I believe we have a strong case."

AFC Bournemouth players are now getting behind the scheme and yesterday player Warren Cummings led the way by signing up to it.

He said: "If the players recognise how important CherryShare is and set an example hopefully the fans will see the club means as much to players as it does to them."

CRISIS TIMETABLE

Jan 1997: AFC Bournemouth goes into receivership with more than £4 million in debts. It is brought back from the brink of extinction by a fans' meeting at the Winter Gardens where lawyer Trevor Watkins rallies the crowd.

June 1997: The club is reborn under Watkins' chairmanship as a community club - the first side in Britain to be run by its supporters.

Feb 2000: The club, which urgently needs a new stadium to comply with safety legislation, asks Bournemouth council for a £1 million loan. It receives £500,000 - half in a loan, the other a grant for its community work.

Dec 2000: Hundreds of fans are asked to dig deep once more at a meeting in the BIC. They raise £100,000 in one night.

June 2002: As financial prob-lems mount, chairman Tony Swaisland proposes selling the stadium and leasing it back from the new owners. The plans are withdrawn in the face of fans' opposition.

July 2002: The club says it cannot pay the next month's wages and is facing winding-up orders.

Sep 2002: New chairman Peter Phillps urges the fans to contribute. His CherryShare scheme raises half the amount needed, £750,000.

Jan 2003: Peter Phillips reveals the club has staved off a threat from Bristol and West Investments PLC to close it down.

April 2004: After the Echo reveals the depth of the club's debts, Phillips writes: "Although we are not in a new financial crisis, it is fair to say that we are still in the old one."

July-August 2004: Three nights of concerts at the stadium fail to make any money.

First published: Sept 18