PORT ELIZABETH, May 10 (ANA) – The proceedings involving the cash-strapped and provisionally liquidated Eastern Province Rugby union was expected to be finalised in the Port Elizabeth High court on Tuesday.
In March, the court ruled that EP Rugby be provisionally liquidated.
The liquidation application was filed in January and initially saw 18 professional rugby players claim that the EP Kings owed them close on R1.3 million in salary arrears.
Subsequently, a further 18 players joined the application as intervening creditors, claiming that EP Kings were in breach of an arbitration ruling awarding them R18 million in respect of salary arrears and other benefits.
The players, together with the SA Rugby Players’ Association (Sarpa), asked the court to liquidate the EP Kings as a result of them being unable to pay their debts.
The attorney who is representing some of the players, Craig Jessop, at the time said that the affairs of EP Rugby would be placed in the hands of the master of the high court and a provisional liquidator would be appointed.
Jessop stressed that the ruling made in March was a provisional order and that the final order may or may not be granted on May 10.
He said that EP Rugby would now have until that date to “sort out this mess”.
“I must just say, in the build up to this application, there are certain intermediaries, they know who they are, who have taken long hours into the night to smoke out SARU on their participation in trying to resolve this dispute,” said Jessop.
At the time when the ruling was made in March, Jessop said that they had not received anything “meaningful” or “material” from the South African Rugby Union.
“We, at the very least, have at present expressed a desire to participate in these proceedings to try and seek some form of resolution to the ongoing dispute. My players welcome discussions with SARU and hopefully between SARU and EP Rugby this matter can be resolved without delay,” said Jessop.
Jessop added that it appeared there were serious intentions expressed for resolution on the part of local government and SARU.
“At least the doors have been opened for serious discussion on this resolution, certain intermediaries have worked tirelessly in trying to achieve the opening of those doors. We now have members of local government here and at least one can say an undertaking from SARU to get closer to an action to seek out a resolution, we hope that a resolution will be found, should it not be found and a final liquidation passed on, there will be investigations into understanding exactly how this mess arose and to the extent that there is a ability to establish personal liability that will be explored on behalf of my players,” he said
He said that players were left a little disillusioned that despite non-payment of the players, Currie Cup and Super Rugby rugby would continue in the Eastern Cape.
– African News Agency (ANA)
