Darryl Broadfoot, Doug Gillon and Matthew Lindsay reflect on the news that Setanta is struggling to pay the money it owes the SPL for broadcasting live SPL football.

SETANTA have vowed to stump up the £3million they owe the SPL after being handed a 48-hour ultimatum.

The satellite broadcaster faced having legal action taken under breach of contract after they failed to deliver the latest installment of the £31m deal by Monday's due date.

The SPL board - Lex Gold, Martin Bain, Rod Petrie, Duncan Fraser and Campbell Christie -convened yesterday and left Setanta in no doubt they were not prepared to let the situation drift.

They told the Dublin-based company the money had to be guaranteed by tomorrow, when the board will discuss the urgent matter again.

Sitting on the sidelines watching the drama unfold are 12 very anxious clubs, the vast majority of whom need to cash in their coffers before they can start making any plans for next season.

And, with the £125m contract which is set to kick in next year in serious doubt as the full extent of Setanta's problems unfold - they must also pay the Barclays Premier League £35m by June 15 - the hope in boardrooms across the country is that a rescue package can be formulated.

Setanta could find a way out by brokering a deal with BSkyb, their main competitor in the subscription market, which would see the channels being offered as part of a Sky Sports package.

But BSkyB have already rejected on request to bail out Setanta with a £50m interest-free loan. And help from financial institutions has also been slow in arriving for a company whose rate of expansion in its first few years of its existence astounded the business world.

The SPL are aware they must continue to look at the bigger picture, and that trying to put the squeeze on Setanta, at a time when the company is under so much pressure, could be counter-productive.

There does not appear to be an alternative offer on the horizon to cover SPL football from next year, and it would be everyone's interests if the deal already on the table was to proceed.

However, Setanta have already indicated they will be looking to make a 20% reduction on the original £125m terms.

Meanwhile, Setanta were hit with another damaging blow last night when the heavyweight world title fight between Vladimir Klitschko and David Haye, which was one of their main summer attractions, was cancelled after the English boxer hurt a hand in training.

It had been hoped that attracting new subscribers to view the event, plus England's World Cup qualifier in Kazakhstan this week, would provide a much-needed cash injection for the company.

The SPL have assured their member clubs that they are being pro-active in protecting their interests and have promised to keep all 12 fully informed of developments.

But a spokesman for the SPL admitted the discussions with Setanta are yet to reach a conclusion and could only say: "The clubs will be kept up to date as things progress."

With season ticket and sponsorship income predicted to fall across the country, that news is anxiously awaited.