FOOTBALL bosses in Selkirk have thrown in the towel after being ordered to stump up a £750 bond by league chiefs.

The cash-strapped Yarrow Park club were handed a £250 fine last week by the Lowland League for failing to fulfill recent fixtures.

Although it is understood the several remaining committee members and supporters at Yarrow Park were confident of paying the penalty, a further cash request by the League's board led to Selkirk's recently appointed chairman Jay Dee Sharkey resigning on Thursday.

And Saturday's cup match with Upper Annandale was subsequently called off.

The remaining post-holders have now resigned en-masse - with the expectation that the club will lose its membership of both the Lowland League and Scottish football associations.

A spokesperson for Selkirk told us: "We had intended paying the £250 fine that we were given at last week's Lowland League meeting, but the club received an email at 9.15pm on Wednesday evening giving us 36 hours to pay a further £750 bond or we wouldn't be allowed to play.

"That bond has finished us.

"We had enough players for Saturday and the one or two who couldn't play were available for Tuesday's game at Spartans, but the way things are we can't raise the required £750."

Selkirk were founding members of the Lowland League.

And they secured their highest finish last season when Ian Fergus guided the team to fifth.

But the success had come at a cost - as the level of debt at the club came to light following the close-season AGM.

A £47,000 bequest to the club was seized by Sheriff Officers acting on behalf of the company who installed the ground's floodlights.

And the remaining debt to Scottish Borders Council, local printing, bus, auditing and engineering companies, national energy firms and honouring player contracts from last season was in excess of £37,000.

A further personal loan to the club by a former committee member was also in excess of £110,000.

Sharkey issued a statement last Thursday when he resigned.

It stated: "I don't feel there's much more that I can offer, or do to help the club, in moving forward from the difficult position it was left in prior to my engagement as Chairman.

"There has also been the very difficult task of having to try and resolve the rebuilding and relationship with other affiliated parties within the club, and also with trying to rebuild trust for the club within the townsfolk of Selkirk itself, as the club does not have financial stability to reach its prospects of further involvement in running as a football club.

"Trying to even build the relationship with supporters and businesses for sponsorship opportunities within the club has become impossible for me to do."

Representatives of Selkirk FC were due to attend next Monday's Lowland League board meeting to discuss their future.

David Baxter, secretary of the Lowland League, defended the issuing of a bond.

He told us: "The Lowland League wanted to give Selkirk every chance of survival.

"Fining the club was one thing but we wanted to make sure they would fulfill their fixtures and we asked for a sum of money to help compensate other clubs should they be unable to do so."

With Selkirk's imminent departure a decision will be made over the coming weeks on how relegation from and promotion to the Lowland League will operate.

The Yarrow Park club's three defeats - to East Kilbride, Gretna and Civil Service Strollers - will be wiped out when the League resorts to 15 teams.

Mr Baxter added: "At this moment in time Selkirk are still members of the Lowland League and until we are told otherwise discussions regarding relegation and promotion won't take place."