Worcester Warriors on brink of player exodus over August’s unpaid wages

Worcester Warriors are on the brink of a player exodus after the squad were informed they were unlikely to be paid their wages this month. Staff and players received a message on Tuesday in which the club’s co-owner Colin Goldring told them he could not access the funds required to fulfil this month’s payroll because of the winding-up petition for unpaid tax issued by HMRC.

The situation at Worcester remains deeply uncertain despite discussions with prospective new investors. If players are not paid on time on Wednesday they can claim breach of contract which the club has 14 days to rectify. If not, those players affected will be free to sign for another club.

The highly rated flanker Kyle Hatherell is already being linked with a move to France and others are certain to follow unless the current gloomy situation takes a dramatic upturn. Time is running out on all fronts with the Premiership season kicking off on Friday week, with Warriors also due to play a pre-season friendly in Inverness against Glasgow Warriors this Friday.

Financial problems have been mounting for some time. Worcester were late in paying their May wage bill and have been losing around £300,000 a month since Covid. The club have been in negotiations with several potential buyers and investors as they seek to convince HMRC they have the ability to come up with £6m in unpaid tax.

Christian Day, the player liaison officer for the Rugby Players’ Association, said the union is increasingly concerned, both for the club and the players caught in the middle. “From the start we’ve tried to give the owners and the club every chance we can to find a solution,” Day said.

“The game wants a club like Worcester to survive. But things are moving very quickly and we