The Board of Directors of the Glentoran Recreation Company confirmed this week that is delighted to announce that effective from Friday 31st January 2020, the club has discharged all obligations to the final historic creditor.
This could not have been achieved without the support and generosity of the Glentoran Family.
At the time of the majority share purchase by Ali Pour in July 2019, the club retained a substantial debt to a final historic creditor. It was agreed with Ali Pour that in order to complete the deal we all so desired, the majority of this remaining debt would be paid by Ali – a sum significantly over and above his initial committed investment – with the remaining amount to be raised by Directors of GFC 1882.
This was an onerous task for directors, shareholders and supporters who had already contributed so readily over the previous decade. But we are delighted to say that we have met our obligation and the final amount was paid to our creditor on Friday last.
This did not come easily. The initial tranche was raised through personal loans from Directors and recently retired directors and from assistance from the Glentoran Community Trust and the Glentoran Supporters Committee (1923), two organisations that have never been found wanting when the club has been in need. We thank them yet again.
The clearance of this final debt is an incredible testament to the loyalty, commitment, resilience and generosity of the core Glentoran support. Through a mixture of share purchases and loans, no fewer than nine of our supporters clubs and twenty six individual supporters came forward ahead of deadline to ensure the club was able to make the final, essential step out of the financial abyss and into the brightest possible new dawn. For that, we thank the following supporters’ clubs for their financial support:
Hillfoot GSC
Raven GSC
Dundonald GSC
Internet GSC
Castlereagh GSC
Victoria GSC
Stormont GSC
Westbourne GSC
North Down GSC
Ali Pour said of this historic development: “It’s been an absolute pleasure to be a part of Glentoran’s climb back to the top. The passion I’ve seen amongst the players and all the supporters has been truly inspiring! I’ve worked very closely with the management and the board and have committed myself to ensure that the club is financially stable in order to continue our journey.
I ask all the Glentoran family to give us your full support and efforts; together we can achieve success!!”
Sixteen months ago, we were in the bottom half of the table with the gates locked and a massive debt burden on our shoulders. Today we are in contention for both league and cup, free of all debt outside the Glentoran Family, with a committed majority investor and a very experienced management team in Mick and Paul. The Glentoran Family can be proud of its achievement and positive about the future. We all deserve that!
LJAT