It's winding up day at the High Court

Time and again we've seen these problems arise in football, but generally in the lower divisions; Kings Lynn were in fact wound up at the back-end of last year over an HMRC debt (around £60,000) that major shareholder (and former Boston United sponsor/backer) Michael Chinn never paid. And Chester City (whose players now won't play)? Don't get me started on the biggest basket case in football; a problem that is exercising all of us involved in some way. In fact most Chester fans are now admitting that someone needs to pull the plug permanently to give the fans the chance to reform and rebuild.

But now, everyone's talking about it; Today on Radio 4, who normally preserve football chat at any level for their half-past the hour sports slot, had the issue covered at 07:45 this morning, with Sugar and David Conn talking. Sugar even appeared on Five Live, the BBC sports and news station whose coverage particularly in the past year of football's issues outside of what happens in the bedroom of John Terry and whether someone will sign for someone else has been sadly a bit of a running joke amongst many fans and journalists I speak to. And that doesn't even begin to tell you just how big an issue this is and is becoming.

It's an extraordinary turnaround; from an issue regarded as minority interest to one now dominating the news and increasingly political agenda in recent years - Andy Burnham and Gerry Sutcliffe's seven challenges (and now a Westminster Hall debate takes place this afternoon on this issue, led by big Supporters' Trust Supporter Manchester Central MP Tony Lloyd - Scroll down on the linked page to find the details). But it is one that most people who kept abreast of the way the economics have been headed knew would come eventually, particularly given that most clubs have been overstretched by a culture of excessive wages and over-reliance on television income at the top; over-mortgaged either to feed the wage-beast or to keep up with debt repayments - many in the League doing so following ITV Digital's collapse; or just been generally chasing the dream - and without any substantial spending controls except outside the pioneering League Two and Conference salary caps (the latter currently not in use).

Some people like those in the Trust Movement, commentators and journalists like David Conn - and more recently Matt Slater at the BBC, and the less high-profile shows like the BBC Non League Show - have been warning about this build up of problems and what it might mean for years. The estimated 37 clubs that supporters' trusts and SD have saved since our foundation ten years ago seems like a fun day out at the seaside when compared to what currently looks like a trek up the Himalayas that might be awaiting us.

Retiring Chairman of the Football League Lord Mawhinney has made a fist of trying to get clubs to be more realistic, and today has once again called for sanity and some more robust controls. But he was accused of being a 'communist' by at least one club chairman - that just doesn't compute. And Lord Triesman has warned football that it needs to get its act together and wasn't exactly embraced warmly in respose.

So where does this leave our national game? All of these problems could just lead everyone who has been preaching a little more measure in recent years to just say 'I told you so', and it's mighty tempting, believe me. But no, this is football's problem, and we - all of us - in football must sort it out. Only a collective response to this will work, aided by others outside of the game who can help too.

But is there actually a solution? A magic bullet? No - there are solutions; they may be salary caps, luxury taxes, loss caps, a more comprehensive, single Fit and Proper Test, built in supporter-representation at clubs to ensure protection against grounds like Crystal Palace's Selhurst Park being split from the club, or the countless number of small London clubs seeing their homes sold to pay for wreckless spending (in some cases, something a little more sinister at play by property developers). There may even be solutions that are a little uncomfortable for some people. But the solutions don't lie in pointing the finger of blame and demanding that 'football sort its problems out', because when Supporters Direct was established ten years ago, we became part of football, and we are one of those bodies in the game who have an interest in ensuring that the future of our national sport is dominated by talk of who might win the League, not who might be first to go in the High Court on winding up day.

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