While clubs in non-league seem to be at the mercy of anyone with a convincing story, Football League sides are beginning to find that they need a new owner to find serious cash.
While Salisbury complained that their brief Morroccan owner had only an email address and a Dubai PO Box, former Doncaster chairman John Ryan has blasted the Football League over his attempts to buy back into the club.
Ryan launched a high profile bid, with One Direction warbler Louis Tomlinson, to takeover the club he left in 2013. However the Football League have blocked the move after the pair, and their partners, failed to prove they had the ready cash available. Ryan told the Yorkshire Post:
"We are the first people to fall foul of this new approach by the Football League. The criteria is set so high now that I can’t imagine anyone will be able to pass the test. Certainly not in the lower leagues, at least.
“I asked the League if we had any chance of passing the test and they simply said ‘no’. I find that ridiculous. Basically, they (the League) are taking into account nothing but pure cash. But what about assets?
“I have assets, Louis certainly has assets. What we don’t have is £5m in cash sitting there, which is what the League seems to want. Who has that amount of cash? People have assets and that should be taken into account. How is anyone going to pass in the future?
“Maybe they should ask all the current owners to see if they can pass this new test. My guess is very few would be able to pass.”
Ryan and Tomlinson tried to use crowdfunding to raise £2million to support their plans, but had raised only £750,000 at the time of writing.