By Graeme Dey

DUNDEE COULD be on the verge of leaving their Dens Park home and moving in with neighbours Dundee United.

Dark Blues administrator Tom Burton—urged on by Halifax Bank of Scotland, Dundee FC’s biggest creditors—has been locked in secret negotiations with United for several weeks.

Despite another three-hour round of talks between the parties on Wednesday no agreement has as yet been reached.

A number of matters, including the sum Dundee would pay for renting Tannadice on match days, have still to be resolved and the differences are substantive.

However, HBOS want the clubs sharing Tannadice come the start of next season and that would require approval from the SPL by the end of this month, so there is considerable urgency surrounding the move.

Burton’s initial approach to United concerned coming to an arrangement for the beginning of the 2005/2006 campaign.

However, HBOS—who are looking to maximise their return on the £13.8 million Dundee owe them—made clear their preference for something to happen sooner and approached United asking them to “co-operate’’ in considering the proposal. Indeed HBOS went even further.

The Courier can reveal they advanced the notion that not only would they take over Dens but they might also “buy” Tannadice from United and lease it—possibly through a third party—back for use by both clubs on an equal basis.

This was dismissed out of hand by the Dundee United board—not least because the ground would no longer have been called Tannadice (City of Discovery Stadium was proposed as the replacement title), the George Fox and Jerry Kerr stands would have been renamed, and the tangerine and black livery replaced by a neutral colouring.

However, if a number of points at dispute can be resolved United are prepared to accept their neighbours as tenants.

It is not entirely clear what HBOS would do with Dens Park although speculation is rife that their intention would be to develop the ground for low cost housing.

SPL rules state that any application to change where a member club would be playing has to be received by March 31 of the preceding season.

The SPL board who would consider such a proposal meets next a fortnight on Tuesday, March 30.

However, clubs require 14 days’ notice of any items which are to arise on the agenda and that means agreement to proceed with this move would have to be reached ahead of lunch-time on Monday as any application by Burton would require to be supported formally by United confirming their willingness to become Dundee FC’s landlords.

Ground-sharing has long been a thorny issue for the SPL.

However, it’s believed that given the perilous nature of the Dark Blues’ finances, the fact the clubs are situated only a couple of hundred yards apart and play alternate weeks as it is, this application might well receive the 8-4 majority needed.

An unusually tight-lipped Tangerines chairman Eddie Thompson refused to comment directly on the issue.

However, Thompson—mindful of both the fact his club owes HBOS around £6 million itself and has to maintain good relations with the bank, and cannot afford to turn its nose up at rental income when Tannadice would otherwise be lying idle—would countenance ground sharing, providing Dundee would be match day tenants only and the money generated was substantial enough.

Dundee FC owners Peter and Jimmy Marr are supportive of the principal of ground sharing but only if any proposal involved both clubs relocating to a new facility and had the backing of the fans, and Dark Blues supporters are certain to be utterly opposed to any switch to Tannadice.

The Marrs are seemingly powerless to prevent this from happening after the club plunged more than £20 million into debt under their stewardship and had to be placed in administration.

And some might argue that however misguided Burton’s actions might be, he is only trying to clear up a mess of the Marrs’ making.

It is believed an attempt will be made to sugarcoat this bitter pill for the Dens Park faithful by suggesting moving to a new stadium along the lines proposed under the failed Euro 2008 bid could still be on the cards.

However, The Courier understands that in discussions between Burton and United this has been touched upon only as a possibility, isn’t under active consideration and does not feature in the motion which might go before the SPL.

Last night George Knight, chairman of Dee4Life, the fund-raising campaign instigated by supporters to help save Dundee, hit out at the move.

“This club is on its knees and could die—but if it is to die then it is as well dying here than down the road,” said Knight.

“I am dismayed and dejected that an application might be made to ground share with United because if it happens, regardless of the terms, it will be the death knell for the club as the fans will not support it.

“This might be more palatable if it was a short- term move with other objectives in mind. But if it is Tannadice for the foreseeable future with no other short or long-term options, the fans simply won’t go there. And without the backing of the fans any business plan that’s been drawn up will be blown out of the water.

“The financial planning for next season will have taken into account income from season tickets. If no-one buys season tickets then any financial advantage gained from this move will quickly be lost.

“Tom Burton has a difficult job to do but he needs to consult with the supporters and gauge our reaction or he’ll push Dundee over the precipice. It is imperative he listens to the fans’ views.”

Knight warned moves towards ground sharing will do serious harm to the Dee4Life campaign.

“This has the potential to severely damage it because any light that appeared to be at the end of the tunnel would be removed.

“Of the £160,000 raised so far, we have handed over £30,000 and are committed to handing over a further £20,000.

“But no other money will be donated unconditionally —we want something for it —and what is happening here shows just how important it is that we have a say in the club. If we already had that, we’d be able to stop this from happening.”

News that Dens Park might not have a future as the home of Dundee FC will be of interest to SportScotland who provided £1.2million in grant aid for the building of the Bob Shankly and Bobby Cox stands in 1999.

Under the terms of that assistance, for a 10-year period they can claim back a diminishing proportion of the money should Dens Park cease to be used for football.

As of today they would, as secured creditors, be due a sum of around £600,000.

It was rumoured last night that the Cox and Shankly stands—which were partly funded by supporters through the Buy a Brick scheme—might be sold off to Inverness Caledonian Thistle, who are seeking to meet SPL criteria, for £1 million.

However, Thistle’s secretary Jim Falconer said, “This is the first I have heard of it.”

A spokesman for Dundee FC joint administrator Tom Burton said yesterday that he was aware of the speculation that ground sharing could be back on the agenda, and it was a question of seeking out the detail.

“There is a chance that there might be absolutely nothing in this,” said the spokesman, although he declined to rule out entirely that there could be a prospect of a ground-breaking deal between the clubs.

He said the situation could move to the extent that Mr Burton might be able to comment within the next few days, but he added there were a number of different interests and people involved in such a scenario.

He confirmed that the Scottish Premier League would be one of the parties involved if it came down to talks over ground sharing. The league has previously set its face against such an arrangement.

A spokesperson for Ernst and Young said, “The administrators’ clear focus is to secure the club’s ability to continue trading and to survive. We are looking at a range of options in relation to where Dundee plays its football, including the status quo.

“At this stage it is important that we keep all avenues open and this is what we are doing.”