THE sale of Southend United has been confirmed and an agreement is in place with a consortium led by businessman Justin Rees after HMRC debts were paid in full.

After weeks of nail-biting speculation, it was confirmed today that the deal is all but done and should be completed on November 1.

The Blues faced a winding up order over a £275,000 HMRC debt and are due back in the High Court today, but the statement confirmed this had “been paid in full”.

The club and chairman Ron Martin had been told that the debt must be cleared before the hearing or the Blues would be wound up by the court.

A joint statement released by the club, Justin Rees’ consortium, and Southend Council yesterday, said: “We can confirm that an agreement for the sale of the Club has been reached with a consortium led by Justin Rees.

“Everyone is working towards a completion date of 1 November 2023, that is when the consortium will formally take control of the club.

“In the interim, the petition debt to HMRC has been paid in full.

“The collaborative approach to agreeing this deal would not have been possible without the support of creditors and the assistance of the leader of Southend city Council.

“We recognise that this has been a stressful time for all associated with the club. We would like to thank our staff for their incredible loyalty and also thank all our stakeholders for their patience.”

It comes after months of negotiations between Australian businessman Justin Rees and Mr Martin, which saw Mr Rees fly from Holland to London to meet the blues chairman on September 25.

Tory leader of Southend Council Tony Cox, who also attended the meeting in London, said: “Over recent weeks and following intensive discussions, I’m delighted that the Conservative administration were able to help facilitate a deal for the sale of Southend United.

“The deal ends months of agony for fans over the future of the club.

“The agreement reached is a good deal for the club and will help secure it’s sustainable future.

"I wish the outgoing chairman well in recognition of 25 years financial support of the club”.