Gretna face administration crisis after players go payless

Gretna, the Scottish Premier League's bottom club, could go into administration before the end of the season. This latest blow comes after head coach Davie Irons and his assistant Derek Collins surprisingly walked out on Tuesday to join First Division outfit Greenock Morton.

Chief executive Graham Muir admitted: "There's always a danger of going into administration but we've had these kind of rumours before.”

It first became apparent that the club might be experiencing financial difficulties earlier this week after staff failed to receive their pay. It later emerged that the weekly payroll is taken care of by club owner Brooks Mileson, who is seriously ill in a Newcastle Hospital.

Muir explained: "The payroll problems have been created by Brooks being ill and getting the release of funds to get it processed. Brooks usually puts the payroll through on a weekly basis. I don't want to paint a bleak picture but you can never say never in football. With the amount of effort that's going on between the club and the Mileson family, we hope that administration is not going to be the case.”