Shame to hear, sounds like it may be getting a little desperate with Mileson in the condition he is in hospital.

Have they received Government backing for this new stadium yet?

I thought it was underway already. I read that it needs to be done before next season or they would be thrown out of the league. Doesn't make much difference now though as they'll throw themselves out with some shocking displays

I hadn't heard anything on it, so assumed they hadn't go it. Indeed threats of expulsion from the League will mean nothing now as they are almost dead on certain to join the Scottish First Division once more. No -one really expected anymore of them, they rose through the ranks a little too fast and did not have the playing squad, staff or facilities of their own to initiate a proper survival attempt.

I reckon there will be later surge from Gretna but will be too late to catch even that Kilmarnock cack

They will really need to pull their fingers out to have any kind of a surge I think. They won't catch Kilmarnock no, however bad a run Killie are on Sunday showed that they are a very capable SPL side who are in a bit of a false position and have suffered severely with several injuries. I can see Killie improving as the season wears on.

Oh dear, have just heard Irons has left the club. Not on any of the websites yet. Gretna are doomed. players to leave the club now and they'll probably fold

Gretna head coach Davie Irons has left the club with immediate effect.

Irons and his assistant Derek Collins have departed as the club appear to be sinking into crisis, as reports from Scotland claim they could be forced into administration.

However, Irons and Collins have wasted little time in finding new employment as they have taken charge at First Division Morton.

Irons leaves Gretna as they currently lie nine points adrift at the foot of the SPL table and are odds on to be relegated after spending just one season in the top-flight.

Gretna, who are playing all their SPL fixtures at Motherwell's Fir Park as their Raydale Park home is not up to standard, have shown few signs that they were looking for a long-term future in the top-flight.

Having failed to bolster their ranks significantly in the summer, they have been shedding players in dramatic fashion this season.

Steve Tosh, Alan Main, John O'Neil, Danny Grainger and Colin McMenamin have all been sold by the club, whilst Fraser McLaren, Erik Paartalu and David Bingham have been loaned out.

Tony Caig, Martin Canning, David Cowan, James Grady, David Graham, Niall Henderson, Allan Jenkins, Ryan McGuffie and Colin Scott were also released on free transfers.

Crisis

The current crisis at the club, which has seen staff go unpaid, is being blamed on the fact that owner Brooks Mileson is currently hospitalised.

Gretna chief executive Graeme Muir confirmed there are big problems at the club.

"It's a worrying time for everyone at Gretna as the man who pays the wages is seriously ill in hospital," he said.

"We are working hard to resolve the situation.

"Obviously we're concerned for Brooks and we're all hoping he'll pull through. But there's a big problem if he's not here to process the payroll.

"We're experiencing the same problems any club would have without a hands-on owner.

"There are a lot of questions which we don't have the answers to. The only man who has the answers is ill in a hospital bed."

The SLP experience really is going belly up at Gretna eh? Fears for there financial safety but I hope they won't fold. One of football's biggest success stories of recent years.

I know, scrap that late surge sugguestion I came out with. The owner is meant to be quite ill in hospital. Really have no clue what's going to happen

Uncertain times thats for sure. Yeah Mileson has been in hospital a while now, do you know whats worng with him?

Good news for Gretna.

Says alot about what way Gretna is run though. The owner is ill in hospital and noone gets paid because he's responsible for it. Good to see he's on the mend though

Yeah that is a little odd i must say, could no-one else have taken over the payroll duties?

His son was running the club since he fell ill so don't see why he couldn't have done it or I'm sure the club have got an accountant at least. I'm sure there is mroe 'goings-on' that we havn't heard about...yet

Gretna striker Kenny Deuchar has signed a deal with Major League Soccer side Real Salt Lake.
Deuchar, 27, will fly to the USA on Thursday before travelling to Argentina for a series of exhibition matches.

Real's general manager Garth Lagerway watched Deuchar score twice in Sunday's 4-2 defeat against Rangers at Ibrox.

Real Salt Lake coach Jason Kreis said: "We saw some video and liked what we saw enough that Garth wanted to go over there and see him play."

Deuchar joined Gretna from East Fife in 2004 and recently spent time on loan with St Johnstone and Northampton Town.

He scored 72 goals in 95 appearances for the Borders club, setting a series of records along the way, including the most amount of goals scored in a Second Division season with 41 netted in 24 appearances.

Deuchar has scored six goals for Gretna this season and six on loan at McDiarmid Park, but the club have struggled at the bottom of the SPL table and were recently beset with financial problems.

"He was a player we talked to a few weeks ago and knew there was a possibility of something," added Kreis.

"When you go to see a player play against Rangers and he scores twice, it tends to be a bit of an element.

"I think we are very fortunate to have Kenny Deuchar."

Real Salt Lake were founded in 2004 and play in the MLS Western Conference.

The club are currently in pre-season training and will head to Rosario in Argentina on Friday for a series of exhibition matches.

The Utah-based club have a 10-year co-operative agreement with Real Madrid, which includes a friendly match every two years in Salt Lake City and the development of a $25m youth academy partly funded by the Spanish giants.

Deuchar is also a practising medical doctor and the move will be enhanced with the prospect of work in a local medical centre.


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The demise continues for Gretna

Indeed. One of their only real threats gone.

I dont really feel sorry for them to be honest. The only reason they made it to the SPL was money, without it they'd still be a non league club. Theres plenty of other well run clubs that deserve a place in the league so unless they sort themselves out then I dont care what happens

What clubs do you think deserve a place in the spl?

To be fair though mate, that amount of money is the only way forward these days in football, particularly for small clubs trying desperately to improve.

Well obviously yeah you need money in modern football but its like saying Chelsea winning the league twice in a row is a great story. Without the money they'd be nowhere.

Fair enough its sad to see it all fall apart for them this season after all the progress over the last 5 or 6 years but its their own fault or not running the club in a professional way.



Im not really up to speed with the Scottish lower leagues but im sure there must be another club without the same resources that still have a really well run club

I agree with Conaldinho here. Alot of people were ranting and raving about their success year after year. If the money had have been invested and used properly they could have made steady progress instead of steaming up through the divisions and looking like going bust soon

Another game off. If dundee was in the spl this wouldnt be happening. But then again when we were to get put up we had to have a stadium big enough for the spl as were not aloud to groundshare.

A disgrace

Gretna will hold a crisis meeting with their financial backers on Friday after caretaker manager Mick Wadsworth revealed they could go out of business.

Just 501 spectators - a record Scottish Premier League low - turned up at Fir Park to watch the bottom club lose 3-0 to Dundee United on Thursday.

Chief executive Graeme Muir hopes that Gretna will not go into liquidation.

"I don't think it is just as bad as that, but we have a difficult situation at the club," he told BBC Sport.

"Does any club have a future when only 501 fans turn up?

"Dundee United did not bring many fans through, so I think many Scottish clubs are facing problems.

"We've been battling through the last three weeks and getting us to the end of the season is paramount."

Gretna's financial problems broke into the public domain when the club was late with player wages while owner Brooks Mileson was seriously ill in hospital.

"Thankfully, the payroll is up to date, but we have other creditors and we are trying to resolve that," said Muir, explaining the reason for Friday's meeting.

Gretna have picked up just 16 points from 28 games in their first season in the top flight.

And, after Thursday's defeat, Wadsworth could give no guarantees that Gretna would stay afloat until the end of the season.

"There's a lot of difficulty at the moment," he said.

"The finances and the survival of the club is on everyone's minds and that takes precedence. We are on a sticky wicket, put it that way.

"People have worked really hard to keep the thing going.

"All we have done in the past few weeks is patch it up, but we are in a bit of a corner now.

"I'm worried about the immediate future.

No money has been forthcoming from Mileson since he was discharged from hospital last month after being hit with a brain infection.

"Brooks is very ill," said Wadsworth. "We have no direct contact with Brooks.

"Everything is through Craig, his son, and it has been a tough call for Craig. We have got no financial assitance from that corner because Brooks is ill.

"If his illness is going to be long term then he has every right not to be worrying about a football club next season.

"What we do hope is that we can cobble it together to get through this season so there is a graceful withdrawal if necessary.

"But our major hope is that he gets better and picks up the reins again, because without him we are in a very difficult situation.

"A lot depends on the meetings, which will involve financial people, directors of the club and probably people from the parent company."

Thursday's attendance was less than half the previous low between Gretna and Inverness and came after the match was postponed twice in six days.

"I think the SPL have let us down," said Wadsworth, whose club have been sharing a ground with Motherwell this season.

"To turn a game round in less than 48 hours when our public have got to travel the best part of a 200-mile round trip, I thought it was unfair. We wanted to play in a fortnight's time.

"I bet there were a lot of people who didn't know this game was on, Rangers and Everton were on telly, Bolton were probably on another channel."



501 fans...that's shocking. They'll be lucky if they even make it to the end of season now

Guess thats what happens when you buy your way through the league

Just shows how pathetically fickle and shallow so many football fans are, everyone supports them when theyre winning then as soon as the club starts going through a tough time the fans just abandon them. They need the fans more than ever right now but sadly thats just how football works.