Wollongong Hawks' debt tops $1million: players owed super

A creditors’ meeting held on Wednesday was told the Hawks owed hundreds of thousands of dollars to the NBL, the tax department and several local suppliers.

The news comes nine days after the club was placed in voluntary administration following the loss of major sponsor Wollongong Coal after a dismal year for the team.

Richard Brien, from administrators Nicols and Brien, said the current debt figure did not include money that might be owed to players regarding certain leave and redundancy entitlements under the terms of their individual contracts, warning the final amount might be substantially higher than $1.1 million.

It was also revealed players were owed ‘‘a significant amount of money’’ in unpaid superannuation.

Mr Brien said his company was seeking legal advice on the situation and would have more details ahead of the next creditors’ meeting in less than a month.

Meantime, it was revealed the club had approximately $36,000 in the bank and assets – mainly office furniture and fittings – worth about $24,000 when Nicols and Brien took control on March 2.

The club’s financial records reveal it owes $212,000 to the tax office, $25,000 to the Office of State Revenue and a combined $159,000 to businesses and suppliers.

The remaining debt is made up of a combination of loans from the NBL and the club’s owner, James Spenceley.

Mr Brien said while the loss of the Wollongong Coal sponsorship deal was significant, at the end of the day the club needed support from the community on game day.

‘‘Ticket sales are down 30 per cent,’’ he said.

‘‘[A lack of] bums on seats contributed to [the current situation] ... the community support has gone away.

‘‘If there’s no support in the city for a basketball team, then we’re wasting our time.’’

Mr Brien said his company was proceeding  under the assumption that the club would continue to operate, but said that decision was largely up to the players, who, as a significant portion of the overall pool of creditors, would have a strong say in its future.

‘‘If you don’t have players you don’t have a team,’’ he said, adding that part of his company’s job was to look at alternative ways for the club to operate to reduce the running costs.

‘‘It has to be fundamentally a feasible business model,’’ he said.

Nicols and Brien will spend the next few weeks preparing a detailed report on the company’s financial position, to be presented to creditors and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission in a month.