Chairman's Statement

Mr Nash said: "Unfortunately I find myself in the position of having to correct certain statements made by Graham Chester that have appeared on the Tilbury FC club website over the past week.

"Firstly and most importantly, Tilbury Football Club have not been contacted by the FA or by the Ryman League in regards to any such as mentioned by Mr Chester.

"The allegations made by Mr Mark Southgate have been handed straight to the clubs solicitor, who is currently investigating his comments.

"I can state that over Mr Chester's two season stay at the club there were discussions of eventually having a new stadium but there was never a promise for this or a £2 million payment into the bank for his needs as team manager.

"My recollection of the pitch perimeter wall being painted and paid for by Mr Chester is that he actually obtained the paint from his father-in-law's shop and it was in fact painted by the good nature of the lads from the clubs youth side.

"I would also like to add that in order to keep the club playing at this level, certain duties like, the cleaning of kit, pitch maintenance and club house duties are all conducted by committee members on a voluntary basis.

"It was in fact Mr Frank Lampard senior who arranged the game with West Ham Utd in order to raise funds for our club. As you all witnessed, apart from the unfortunate incident where the West Ham coach came under attack from a certain section of our so called supporters, the event was a complete success and the money raised help the club finances.

"With today's current financial climate, most football clubs at our level and even at professional level are having to cut their budgets and we are no exception to this situation.

"There are obvious day-to-day running costs of a football club which has also felt the pressure of this recession.

"However, monies including youth Sponsorship, subscriptions and further sponsorship of £22,000 that was made available from the Port of Tilbury. All this money was placed into a new bank account created by Mr Chester and Mr Leary of which I was never given access or knowledge of.

"I also handed over all sponsorship payments made by Motana that to my knowledge was used for players' expenses.

"Mr Paul Tandy has never actually spoken to me but I do believe him to be a business associate and friend of Mr Chester. For the record Mr Chester also ceased speaking to me when I cut the budget around 12 months ago.

"Mr Chester also stated that Mr Southgate was a true supporter of the club. Again the truth is that he was only ever seen on match days, arriving just before kick off, watching the game and leaving straight afterwards. His interests in carrying out his tasks and duties as club secretary was indeed very limited. This situation certainly raises both uneasiness and mistrust which was certainly unhealthy to the club as a whole.

"With this in mind and as chairman of this club I felt that I was left with no alternative and I truly believe that I have acted with the best interest of the club at heart.

"I would also like to clarify that Mr Chester, Mr Southgate and Mr Tandy were notified of the committee's decision officially by post and not just by a simple email as stated by Mr Chester.

"I have spent 25 years at this club, having rebuilt it from a football club on verge of being extracted from the league for having a sub standard ground grading to a club with its present stadium, facilities and club house. Along with a handful of volunteers, we have achieved this with endless hours of hard work, no payment and even my own funding.

"To finish off i would like to welcome Paul Vaughan to Tilbury Football Club and congratulate him on his new appointment as Team Manager. Paul brings with him a vast knowledge of the game along with a incredible enthusiasm for football which I am sure will be received by all at the club as a breath of fresh air.

"I have full faith in Paul who will receive my full support in building a team, built for success next season.

"As i have never had access to the contact numbers of last season's squad, can I please request that they either contact either myself or Paul as soon as possible.

Robbie Nash