THE owners of the Newcastle Jesters ice hockey club claim the end of a seven-month pay dispute is still their priority.

Last week, club chairman Paul Smith promised the outstanding £150,000 would be paid by August 10, ending a summer of speculation, and frustration for the Ice Hockey Superleague (ISL) club's fans.

But the deadline passed without the money being transferred to the Ice Hockey Players' Association, which is dealing with the matter on behalf of last season's squad.

Jonathon Stobart, new finance director of the company that owns the club, said there were a number of small problems which combined to stop the payment on Friday.

The club cannot start to sign players for the new season, which starts on September 2, until they have made the payment, because of a ban on player registration imposed by the ISL.

The Jesters' new director of ice hockey, Glenn Mulvenna, and the fans are becoming increasingly concerned as the situation plods on. Mr Stobart said it is his priority to sort the problem in hours and days rather than weeks