Saints defend refusal to pay charity cheque (From Daily Echo)

Saints defend refusal to pay charity cheque

4:52pm Wednesday 11th June 2008 in

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SAINTS chairman Michael Wilde has defended the club's refusal to pay a charity invoice to the family of a young coma victim.

As revealed in yesterday's Daily Echo, a request sent to the football club for £1,650 to buy a table at a charity ball and advertising spot on a community website was passed on to former chairman Leon Crouch.

Sophie Wilkinson's family is organising several fundraising initiatives for her charity Sophie's Wish - which aims to make £300,000 to buy a hi-tech mobile scanner for Southampton General Hospital.

Mr Wilde said the club handed the invoice to Mr Crouch because it was addressed to him as the person who agreed to it, and no one else knew anything about it.

"As the club secretariat had not previously been advised of this matter by Mr Crouch, they immediately sought clarification as to whether this was a club matter or a personal matter," said Mr Wilde.

He said Mr Crouch's secretary asked for the invoice to be forwarded on, and that was the last the club heard about it, so the presumption was made that Mr Crouch wanted to pay for it himself.

"Certainly at no time was the club advised by Mr Crouch or his secretary that this was a club commitment," added Mr Wilde.

Mr Crouch has since personally paid the invoice in full.