Dundee have been accused of being “immoral” in a scathing attack by League Managers’ Association chairman Alex Smith.
With the Dark Blues about to enter administration for the second time in seven years later this week, Smith has rounded on the club over their treatment of present boss Gordon Chisholm and his predecessor Jocky Scott.
Dundee’s desperate financial problems, caused by a £365,000 outstanding tax bill, have placed major doubts over Chisholm’s future and that of his assistant Billy Dodds.
The duo were lured to Dens in March after Scott was sacked, despite the fact Dundee were still leading the first division.
At that time, the Dark Blues’ tax bill had started to go unpaid and the club were operating at a monthly five-figure loss.
However, Chisholm was still made several budget promises which have subsequently not been met.
Smith is now furious that Chisholm and Dodds’ jobs appear to be on the line so soon after being given contracts and assurances.
“I have been watching what is going on at Dundee and find it completely immoral that they took Gordon and Billy away from secure jobs at a time they knew they had financial problems,” said Smith.
“Gordon was doing a good job at Queen of the South and working in a safe environment but Dundee enticed him away from that and look what has happened.
“They made a change of managerone I found ridiculous when they were sitting top of the league and just a few weeks away from promotionand brought someone else in when they were not paying their tax bills.
“The same goes for Billy Dodds, who had a good career in the media but gave it up to get involved in football again on the back of promises they made but which have not been kept.
“I find the whole situation astonishing, especially as this is a club which suffered similar problems seven years ago.
“You would have thought they had learned from what happened but they have been mismanaged again.
“They have handed out contracts to managers and players knowing that the club cannot afford them if one man (former benefactor Calum Melville) decides he’s had enough.
“Unfortunately, yet again at Dundee, there appears to have been a short-term outlook within the boardroom.Ridiculous”It is no way to run a football club and a real tragedy for Dundee because they are a great club with a fantastic history.”
Smith also hit out at the treatment of Scott and his former assistant Ray Farningham who last month attempted to take Dundee to an employment tribunal to seek compensation.
That hearing was cancelled after Melville, a key witness, claimed he was unable to attend.
Now, it seems certain Scott and Farningham have no prospect of a financial settlement.
“The situation with Jocky Scott is ridiculous,” added Smith.
“He has been a great servant to the club and had them top of the league.
“It was up to the board whether they wanted him to continue or not but he had a contract and is entitled to be paid what he was due.
“To have not paid it when they sacked him is bad enough but now this situation has arisen it is even worse.”
Meanwhile, Dundee chief executive Harry MacLean has refused to be drawn on exactly who or what caused the financial meltdown which sees the Dark Blues staring administration in the face again.
On Saturday, MacLean, as well as fans’ rep Stuart Murphy and former Dee4Life chairman Scott Glenday, addressed a gathering of around 150 fans inside Dens Park.
There was also a question and answer session at the meeting, which the press were not allowed to attend.
However, MacLean insists he will not publicly be expanding on where it all went so terribly wrong for Dundee.
“This is not the time for recriminations,” he said.
“No one is pointing the finger of blamewe did not do that at the meetinginstead, this is a time when we all have to stick together.”
Dundee have formally approached Bryan Jackson of accountancy firm PKF to act as administrator.
MacLean will now be meeting with representatives from the company at Dens to discuss how to proceed.
“We are not in administration at the moment but the people from PKF will come in over the next couple of days,” he added.
“I can make recommendations, but once we enter administration all decisions will lie with the administrators.”