THE consortium board trying to save Salisbury City say they are not throwing in the towel yet as they continue to seek justice.

In a statement on the club’s Facebook page, the consortium board of five local business owners said: “Contrary to any speculation or unofficial source, the club are determined to seek justice through the courts to restore ownership and seek reinstatement into the Conference South.”

The statement said they commended Mr Justice Mann, who they appeared before in the High Court on Thursday, for trying to help the club and spending two hours trying to “unravel the dire mess the club have been put in”.

Although the board failed to achieve their objective of immediate ownership, they were granted a number of injunctions against Moroccan businessman Otail Touzar, preventing him from disposing of shares in the club and preventing him from exercising any power over the club.

The statement said: “In summing up Mr Mann said there was a clear case of fraudulent misrepresentation by Touzar and aired his surprise at the FA’s decision not to allow us into the appeal process when there was a clear case for the current board of directors to be recognised as legitimate owners.

“We accept, with the season kicking off today, this is far from an ideal situation, but we have no intention of throwing in the towel. We are determined to ensure justice prevails and relevant parties who have hindered and obstructed us are legally brought to account.”

The board plan to make a further appeal to the High Court this Thursday but, with the season now underway, the club’s future is still unclear.

Should the Conference South route be blocked, there is still a chance of Salisbury making a late entrance into the Sydenhams Wessex League whose top flight kicked off with 21 clubs last week – one short of capacity.

SWL chairman Ian Hoare went on record over the weekend saying: “We have not been approached by anyone at Salisbury City, but my understanding is that they have been in contact with the FA.

“The simple answer is, yes, we have a space and, yes, if we can pass the idea through our member clubs then it is something we would certainly consider.

“Our Premier Division is running a club light, so Salisbury could easily slot in. It’s a frustration that one team has to have a Saturday doing nothing when they would prefer to be playing, so it solves an issue our end.

“It wouldn’t be ideal for them to join a number of weeks after we’ve started, but it’s a possibility.

“They’re a local club and it’s sad to see what’s happened, but time is ticking – the longer they leave it, the less chance there is of them joining.”