I know that there have been posts on this all week but I am more confused and concerned now than I was when the announcement was made. Is there anyone out there who is clever enough to tell me what is going on? Who benefits from the closure and how do they benefit? Is it in some way linked to the Cryne family’s claim in court for money owed? Is it applying pressure to Barnsley council? I suspect some kind of brinkmanship, but I fail to see the big picture if that is what it is. What options can the 80% group apply if they lose the argument in court? Will they pull out? If they do, then what happens?
My opinion (and I have no inside knowledge) is that the 80%-ers are trying to lower the asking price for the ground purchase by making out that it's in a dilapidated state and not worth what the Council/Cryne group want for it. If it turns out that there has been a safety inspection by some independent authority, which found the West Stand to be unsafe, then I would change my opinion. The lack of any evidence for this suggests that the real reason for the closure is either as stated above or something to do with the dispute with the Cryne family.
