TWO groups of investors, led by a household name in British sport, are in negotiations to buy Newcastle Jesters Ltd after the present owners had their franchise removed.

But it is increasingly unlikely that there will be top-flight ice hockey in the region this season.

The club's director of finance Jonathan Stobart claims the owners 'forfeited' the franchise at yesterday's Superleague board meeting.

And he added that "it ain't over until it's over" as European Sports Holdings, part of Fablon Investments, is battling to get the new investors in place to take control.

Proposals are expected to be ready to be put to the ISL within ten days.

The two groups are believed to be made up of a pair of investors, who are competing against a group of five. However, Stobart said former Dundee owner Tom Stewart's advances had been rejected by the owners.

Stobart said the new owners would take control of at least 76 per cent of the limited company and, if possible, the entire club, taking it out of the present owners' hands.

He also revealed the lead partner in both groups was a well known name in sport but not presently associated with the North-East.

"We now have three months to find new investors and we almost had them in place for today," he said.

"We knew what the resolution was today and we had no problem with that.

"But we have to move very quickly."

Ice Hockey Players' Association (IHPA) executive director Jo Collins said she was "hugely disappointed and thoroughly dejected" that negotiations to resolve the eight-month pay dispute that has thrown the club into crisis could not be resolved.

"We felt that we and our lawyers had done everything we could to accommodate both the owners of the Jesters and the league in trying to find a resolution to the problem of the debts to players," she said.

The owners owe £150,000 to last season's squad, and a reported further £100,000 to other creditors.

Collins added: "However, we had no control over the other debts and as the owners in the end failed to make any payment under the proposals put to them recently, the writing was clearly on the wall.

"Obviously, we shall be consulting with our lawyers as to any other avenues to explore and the claims lodged in the ET (employment tribunal) are going ahead as we have an agreement from the owners to an award being made in the players' favour."