Payment of wages to players and staff members underway - Worcester owners

Worcester Warriors' owners have revealed that they have already initiated the process to transfer the remainder of the August wages to the staff members and players amid the financial crisis.

A number of Worcester players and staff members went to social media expressing concern over the unpaid wages with young scrum-half Ollie Wynn going on to reveal that he is currently homeless due to the current situation.

The crisis hit the club after they were served a winding-up petition by HMRC over unpaid tax which is expected be in the tune of £6m.

Nevertheless, the club's owners Jason Whittingham and Colin Goldring said the payroll for the August is underway and an electronic issue in the bank added to the delay.

"This situation must be stressful for you all. We are sorry we are in this boat. We've done everything we can to avoid it. All we can do now is deal with what's in front of us.

"Regarding the payroll situation, the bank have finally confirmed the issue has been resolved and we can process the rest of the player and staff salary payments.

"Some have already gone through. There are over 150 payments and each one takes around 10 minutes. The bank are having to constantly watch and approve each one to prevent the blocking IT issue that keeps recurring.

"Those payments have already started going through.

"The delay with that first payment has not impacted on the second payment to reach 100% of salary. We are now finalising contracts on that funding with the hope of signing in within a matter of days. Payment is made immediately after signing.

"Things are progressing well behind the scenes with one investor group in particular, to ensure everything is in place for us to safely attend the away game against London Irish and put on our home fixture on the 17th of this month.

"We have also been working with the RFU to make sure all insurances are in place for the stadium and players including the required medical cover for our Warriors men's and women's teams."

Meanwhile, a Premiership Rugby spokesperson said they are in constant touch with the all the parties to ensure the club's participation in the upcoming season.

“The RFU and Premiership Rugby have been in regular dialogue with the RPA, DCMS and Worcester Warriors, and the Premiership clubs since a winding up petition was filed by HMRC," said the spokesperson.

“As a result of assurances provided on payment of salaries and insurance cover they are able to participate in Premiership Rugby.

“We will continue to work together to provide the Worcester Warriors owners with the best opportunity for developing their future sustainability plans.”