Last updated at 11:50, Saturday, 11 August 2012

Greg Abbott believes Carlisle United are the perfect model for clubs like Portsmouth who need to get their finances under control.

Carlisle’s League One rivals escaped going into liquidation yesterday after Liam Lawrence, the last remaining senior player on the books at Fratton Park, agreed to leave the club.

Midfielder Lawrence has reached a compromise agreement with Pompey’s administrators, paving the way for former owner Balram Chainrai’s company Portpin to buy back the stricken south-coast club.

Administrator Trevor Birch had set a deadline of yesterday for every senior player to be off the wage bill, otherwise he would have to close Pompey down.

Portsmouth will now be able to fulfil their League One fixtures but have incurred another 10-point deduction following their latest spell in administration.

Manager Michael Appleton will bring his side to Brunton Park on August 25, before Carlisle travel to the south coast on February 16.

Abbott believes the way Carlisle is run on a strict budget, without overstretching themselves, is a blueprint for other clubs to follow if they want to avoid following Portsmouth into administration.

He said: “Our club is run in the right way and the board doesn’t bow to pressure of spending more than what comes in, and in that respect it looks as though the club will be alright financially and won’t run the risk of going out of business.

“I know at the end of the day players grumble, managers grumble and supporters grumble but I don’t think anybody would be too happy to see us go out of business. You have to understand what the board are doing for this club.

“Maybe Portsmouth will now run their business in a similar fashion to other clubs because figures have to stack up.

“It’s not rocket science – if you’ve got £100,00 coming in, that’s all you can spend.

“It’s great they have been saved because they are a fantastic football club with fantastic supporters and we can’t wait to welcome them here.”

Before that their competitive campaign begins with a Capital One Cup first-round trip to Plymouth on Tuesday.

Appleton will be hoping the takeover is completed by then so he can recruit some players, having been working with a mixture of youngsters and trialists during pre-season.

First published at 10:53, Saturday, 11 August 2012
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk