OXFORD United's accounts show that the club owed more than £13.5m last June.

The Oxford Mail can reveal that United made a profit before tax of £614,778 in the year ending June 30, 1997 - largely due to the sale of ace defender Matt Elliott - but at that date they also owed a total of £13,591,362 to creditors.

Accounts obtained by the Oxford Mail from Companies House show that the club was owed £8,586,491, but that £8,366, 697 of this was due from the club's own stadium development company.

Auditors Critchleys noted that the future of the club as a going concern depends upon funding.

The auditors write: "The going concern basis has been used, despite the deficiency of net assets, because the directors are confident that proposals currently under discussion with a consortium of investors will result in funding sufficient to enable the group to continue trading."

The accounts also show that the club contracted to pay out £23m capital expenditure on their new stadium at Minchery Farm. It was Elliott's sale to Leicester City for a club record £1.6m which helped United to turn their £1.9m loss from 1996 into a £600,000 profit last year.

The club made a total profit of £1,418,113 on transfer dealings in the 12 months to last June, compared with a loss of £458,154 the previous year.

Among other sales in that time was winger Chris Allen's £400,000 transfer to Nottingham Forest.

The accounts showed a small increase in players' wages. The number of playing staff, including managers and team coaches, rose from 34 to 39 and employment costs for the group went up by £107,000 to £2.19m.

The wages of the highest-paid director, however, dropped from £118,098 to £96,179.

This is believed to have been former manager and director of football Denis Smith, whose 1995-6 salary was enhanced by bonuses for winning promotion.

The accounts say that the Manor Ground is expected to sell for more than £5m.

They also mention that £900,000 the club was due to pay Oxford City Council as an installment for the Minchery Farm stadium site on September 30 1997 has been deferred until the stadium is first brought into use.

Copies of the club's accounts are expected to be sent to shareholders in the next day or so.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.