By Craig Smith

EAST FIFE’S board of directors are expected to discuss Falkirk businessman Sid Collumbine’s £500,000 bid for a stake in the club in the next few days.

A board member with Stenhousemuir for 17 years, Collumbine latterly spent three years as Dumbarton’s director of football but has decided to pursue his interest in the Fifers after a brief spell out of the game.

The Collumbine-led consortium have sent a formal unconditional bid to the East Fife board offering to buy all or part of the club, with the offer said to be on the table for “as long as they wish to peruse it.”

In response, however, East Fife chairman Derrick Brown admitted he hadn’t officially received the bid but assured supporters that the club’s directors would sit down soon to discuss the matter fully.

“The first I heard about it was when I read it in The Courier this morning so I assume it’s in the post,” Brown said yesterday.

“I haven’t seen the bid yet so until I actually get to see it, I can’t really comment on it further.

“But I’m sure it’s something the board will consider and we will take it forward from there.”

Supporters will be hoping Collumbine’s offer will help bring some stability to the club on the back of a turbulent season which saw manager Jim Moffat being sacked, assistant manager Greg Shaw walk out and chairman Brown facing calls from fans to step down.

East Fife Supporters’ Trust, meanwhile, have welcomed the news of the consortium’s offer.

The trust’s board hope to meet with Collumbine as soon as possible to discuss ways in which, should the consortium be successful, they can contribute to the club’s development.

Speaking on behalf of the trust, chairman Allan Duthie said he hoped the unrest the club has experienced in recent months would soon come to an end.

“We look forward to working again with the club rather than being in dispute with it,” he added.

“We will be happy to meet with Sid and explore ways in which we can work together.

“We know that the club will require investment and we hope to be in a position to make a substantial contribution in the not too distant future.”

As well as the boardroom wrangles at New Bayview, the club is also thought to be trying to press ahead with plans to lay a synthetic pitch—following in the footsteps of Dunfermline Athletic and Hamilton Accies.

Extra revenue will be the driving force behind the decision, although it is expected to cost the club up to £350,000 to install.

Asked about the issue yesterday, Mr Brown remained relatively tight-lipped on the subject but revealed that the plans were not dead in the water.

“The artificial surface is under consideration and hopefully, whether it is in the next week, the next month or the next year, a decision will be reached,” he said.

“One thing’s for sure, if we want to have it installed for next season we will have to make haste with it.”

If the pitch plan does go ahead, the facility will be opened up to the local community for sports use.

If this bid has been on the table for a year how didn't Derrick know about it? Is it lies, lies, it's all lies!!

it hasn't been on the table for a year. it is new this week. the previous 'bid' wasn't a bid - it was collumbine looking for a seat on the board.

So why was Dave Marshall getting slagged off about it?

Interesting comments from the Daily Record, that Derrick hopes the same board of directors will stay in place, and they may consider a share issue to dilute the current shareholder' shareholding

Would like to see this report. Can you post it on here . Looks like shennanigans to me.